The Affiliate Members Plenary Session, the most important statutory meeting of the Affiliate Members, met for the 44th time within the framework of the 25th UNWTO General Assembly, held this week in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

Expansion Strategy

Under the theme “Enhancing tourism through public-private cooperation” 150 participants, representing around 70 Affiliate Members met in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, to debate the state of the Affiliate Membership, the main results achieved since the previous Plenary Session, analyse the evolution and results of the ongoing expansion strategy for a quality oriented and geographically balanced Membership and share information and proposals for future projects and collaborations.

In this context, the Affiliate Members Department presented the UNWTO Programme of Work for the period 2024-2025. Among more than 50 different contributions received, selected Affiliate Members had the opportunity to take the stage and explain more in detail the projects and initiatives submitted and that will be implemented in the near future with the Affiliate Members Department and UNWTO’s support.

Recognizing Long-Term Allies

The session also featured a special Award Ceremony in recognition of long-standing Affiliate Members, for their valuable contributions to the successful fulfillment of the mission of the Organization during over 30 years of Membership. Among the awardees, 12 Affiliate Members have been recognized in the bronze category (more than 30 years of Affiliate Membership), 14 in the silver category (more than 40 years of Affiliate Membership) and 1 for the gold category (50 years of Affiliate Membership).

On this occasion, Affiliate Members have also been introduced to the new modernized platform that the Affiliate Members Department will launch in the following weeks, which will provide a more interactive and dynamic management of the network while enhancing networking and collaboration within the Affiliate Members’ network.

The Plenary Session offered the perfect stage to highlight some of the opportunities for Affiliate Members to further engage with UNWTO in two of the main priority topics of the Organization, namely education and the protection of tourists. This is a crucial effort to ensure a better integration of the Affiliate Membership in the UNWTO agenda.