Secretary-General for the UNWTO, H.E. Zurab Pololikashvili,
Chair of the Joint Commission, H.E. Mohammed Zamri Mat Jain,
Co-Chair, His Excellency, H.E. Dr. Abdulla Mausoom,
Representatives of the Asia-Pacific Member States,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Bula Vinaka and good evening from Fiji.
The last time we convened as a Joint Commission, I spoke of how Fiji had gone over two months since the last case of COVID-19.
A lot has changed since then. As it has been for many other nations, Fiji too found itself in the grips of the second wave showing us just how fluid the pandemic is. We are slowly emerging from the brunt of it due to the success of our vaccination campaign.
Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen,
We have spent well over a year now in what has been the most challenging time of our lives. While we have seen other parts of our economies gradually resuming, travel and tourism, for the larger part, remains on hold.
As we all know, we as a Region (Asia Pacific), have suffered the greatest decline in international arrivals, owing to greater levels of travel restrictions.
Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Hopes for a swift recovery of international travel are now pinned on access and acceptance with COVID-19 vaccines.
The impact of the pandemic on global economies and its people remains uneven. Destinations with higher vaccination levels have reopened to some extent – further indicating the clear correlation between vaccination levels and travel restrictions.
Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Fiji’s goal is to safely re-open travel and tourism by November 2021 – predicated on national vaccination rates.
Today, we stand at around 97 percent of eligible Fijians having had their first jab and 58.2 percent fully vaccinated.
As mentioned by Chair, we will be driven by emerging travel innovations and novel solutions for a shift from the “zero-COVID” approach towards an endemic strategy.
Fiji has collaboratively developed a Travel and Tourism re-opening Framework. This travel proposition has two goals. One, to minimise risks and keep both tourists and Fijians safe. Second, ease restrictions to maintain competitiveness.
The Framework will look at national and individual factors that determine eligibility to travel to Fiji. This includes acceptable test positivity and vaccination, as well as any new variants of concern.
Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen,
We know that one of the greatest considerations to effectively re-start travel and tourism is the harmonisation of global health and safety protocols – including mutual recognition of vaccination certificates or passports.
The faster we standardise vaccine certifications and health and safety standards, including having conforming or single electronic platforms, ease of verification and data sharing, the sooner travel can return.
Last year, Fiji embarked on the Care Fiji Commitment (CFC) – a destination-wide assurance to the health and safety of visitors.
The CFC is a critical instrument in building trust and ensuring businesses are ready to welcome visitors back. The programme now includes vaccination modules, which certifies CFC approved operators that are fully vaccinated.
Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Fiji is currently developing its own Vaccine Certificate where Fijians can have their vaccination and COVID-19 test information on their smartphones or paper printed with readable parts such as barcodes or QR codes.
Such digital solutions and harmonised protocols is where we need greater collaboration and support.
Excellences, Ladies and Gentlemen,
The UNWTO, as an international organisation with members from across the world, will need to play a greater leadership role.
There is no denying that the Asia Pacific, particularly the Pacific, has far greater dependence on tourism and so the socio-economic ramifications are greater too.
The policy measures of the UNWTO must therefore address our unique challenges and provide more tailored support.
We, as Joint Regional Commissions, can leverage our collaborative experiences as the foundation on which we can create a more sustainable recovery.
I’d like to conclude by thanking the Secretary-General, the UNWTO team and Joint Commission Member States.
Thank you.