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ITB Berlin NOW 2021 to Commence with WTCF as the Exclusive Co-Host of the ITB Convention

From 9- 12 March 2021 ITB Berlin NOW will virtually open its gates after last year’s last-minute cancellation. As the world’s biggest tourism fair and acknowledged platform of exchange of ideas and expertise showcasing all parts of the tourism industry, ITB Berlin aims at presenting the latest developments, innovative strategies in view of an globalized world.

Release time : 2021-03-08 15:45:31
source : WTCF

From 9 -12 March 2021 ITB Berlin NOW will virtually open its gates after last year’s last-minute cancellation. As the world's biggest tourism fair and acknowledged platform of exchange of ideas and expertise showcasing all parts of the tourism industry, ITB Berlin aims at presenting the latest developments, innovative strategies in view of an globalized world. The event is the annual highlight in the tourism fair calendar and a must attend gathering of tourism professionals around the world. The fair will be held online this year which includes the opening ceremony, keynote speeches and special forums. The World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF) is long time partner of ITB Berlin as the exclusive co-host of the ITB Convention for the fifth consecutive time.

On 9 March ITB Berlin NOW 2021 will be inaugurated. The Secretary-General of WTCF, Mr. Chen Dong will deliver a speech at the opening ceremony. On the afternoon of 11 March, Ms. Pang Wei, Deputy Director-General of Beijing Municipal Culture and Tourism Bureau, will give a keynote speech. She will share with the audience Beijing's experience in successfully fighting the pandemic and restarting tourism in the capital under the topic "City Tourism after COVID-19: Tourism Re-start of Beijing".

On the afternoon of 11 March, Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Arlt, CEO of China Outbound Tourism Research Institute (COTRI) and member of the WTCF Expert Committee will present the latest research of WTCF: the World Tourism Economy Trends Report 2021. The report comprises the findings of the academic research undertaken by WTCF with focus on a comprehensive analysis on the industry's economic trends on national, regional and international level, changes to the regional developmental landscape, key features of major countries, development trends of key players and innovative recovery strategies undertaken by cities. The official website of WTCF

(https://en.wtcf.org.cn/) will provide the full report of the World Tourism Economy Trends (2021) for further reference after the official presentation.

WTCF will also hold a special online expert panel named "New Normal, New Practices". Present at the forum will be professionals from the academia, the private sector and global cities. They will discuss the recovery and development of urban tourism amid the normalization of pandemic prevention and control. The forum will be moderated by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Arlt, CEO of China Outbound Tourism Research Institute. Mr. Philip Dodd will deliver a keynote speech with the title "City Swop - Cultural Exchange: Generating New Forms of Urban Tourism". Four international experts from the Global Tourism Economy Forum in Macau, Airbnb, Trip.com and ForwardKeys will join the panel discussion. They will address the question of how we will travel after the pandemic from different point of views and sectors of the tourism industry. What can we learn from the pandemic for a better urban tourism? The session will be broadcast live globally via simultaneous interpretation in Chinese and English.

This year ITB Berlin NOW Convention will not be accessible free of charge for the general public. Tourism professionals need to register for ITB Berlin NOW and get access by buying the ticket for the ITB Convention. WTCF members will take advantage of a 50% discount on the official price. (www.itb.com/now).

ITB Berlin looks back of a successful history of 50 years. Every year, the fair attracts 850 top buyers, 10,000 exhibitors from 5 continents and 185 countries and regions as well as thousands of visitors from around the word. ITB Berlin is the biggest tourism fair in the world and it is recognized as the "Olympics of the tourism sector." Since 2016, WTCF has been invited annually to attend the fair and is proud to be the exclusive co-host of the ITB Berlin Convention. The federation addresses the audience

at the opening ceremony, delivers keynote speeches and organizes special forums and other activities for the fair.

Attachment: Part of Agenda

ITB Berlin NOW Convention Stage 1
Convention Opening
Time Tuesday, March 9, 10:00 - 10:15 (Berlin Time)

Tuesday, March 9, 17:00 - 17:15 (Beijing Time)
Co-Host Prof. Dr. Roland Conrady, Scientific Director | ITB Berlin Convention

Lea Jordan, Co-Founder & Head of Marketing | techtalk.travel
Greetings Chen Dong, Secretary-General of World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF)
ITB Keynote Interview: Resilience and Recovery of Tourism Destinations
Time Thursday, March 11, 10:15 - 10:30 (Berlin Time)

Thursday, March 11, 17:15 - 17:30 (Beijing Time)
Interview Guest Hon. Edmund Bartlett, Minister of Tourism, Jamaica
ITB Keynote Speech: City Tourism after COVID-19: Tourism Re-Start of Beijing
Time Thursday, March 11, 10:35 - 10:50 (Berlin Time)

Thursday, March 11, 17:35 - 17:50 (Beijing Time)
Moderator Monika Jones, TV News Anchor | Deutsche Welle
Speaker Pang Wei, Deputy Director-General | Beijing Municipal Culture and Tourism Bureau
Speech Content
1. Strengthen the guidelines for epidemic prevention and control for the tourism industry;

2. Effectively implement principles of Covid19-prevention among hotels and rural home-stays for those visiting and returning to Beijing to maintain the impact of the pandemic at the minimum;

3. Enable domestic tourism and consumption for the peak seasons during national holidays by implementing policies related to pandemic control;

4. Provide necessary assistance to the tourism industry, formulate policies and schemes for different stages and various stakeholders of the sector, put efforts to ensure the smooth operation of businesses of the industry, aide those enterprises facing challenging situations and strengthen their confidence;

5. Ensure flexible services and support as innovative partner of the tourism sector, focus on flagship projects and leading enterprises, incubate high potential enterprises, and strengthen the reputation and quality of brands;

6. Recognize potential markets, activate the domestic economic cycle of the tourism sector, promote both urban and rural tourism as well as strengthen the night economy;

7. Promote the potential synergies of the tourism sector and other industries, diversify consumption scenarios with the concepts of "tourism +" and "+ tourism", extend the life value of tourists and leverage the multi-sector benefits of tourism activities;

8. Involve the application of technology, promote the development of smart tourism, mainstream the concept of "no reservation, no travel", and maintain a safe, friendly and reliable market environment.
ITB Resilience Roundtable (with Jacobs Media and the Resilience Council)
Time Thursday, March 11, 11:20 - 11:55 (Berlin Time)

Thursday, March 11, 18:20 - 18:55 (Beijing Time)
Moderator Ian Taylor, Executive Editor | Travel Weekly
Panelist
Hon. Najib Balala, Minister of Tourism and Wildlife, Kenya

Gloria Guevara, President & CEO | WTTC

Hon. Staša Košarac, Minister of Foreign Trade and Economic Relations, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Dan Richards, CEO | Global Rescue
Conference Content
-Thought leaders from the public and private sector discuss policies that have been or will be launched and their impact

-The panel will discuss implementation and enforcement, how can policies be driven down to the local level successfully?
ITB Introductory Presentation: New Normal, New Practices (in Cooperation with WTCF & COTRI)
Time Thursday, March 11, 13:00 - 13:15 (Berlin Time)

Thursday, March 11, 20:00 - 20:15 (Beijing Time)
Speaker
Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Arlt., member of the WTCF Expert Committee and CEO | COTRI
Philip Dodd Chairman | Made in China UK
Content
World Tourism Economy Trends Report 2021 by Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Arlt

City Swop - Cultural Exchange: Generating New Forms of Urban Tourism by Mr. Philip Dodd
ITB Panel Discussion
New Normal New Practices - What can we Learn from the Pandemic for a Better Urban Tourism? (In Cooperation with WTCF & COTRI)
Time Thursday, March 11, 13:15 - 13:55 (Berlin Time)

Thursday, March 11, 20:15 - 20:55 (Beijing Time)
Moderator Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Arlt, CEO | COTRI
Panelist
Olivier Ponti, Vice President Insights | ForwardKeys

Kum Hong Siew, COO | Airbnb China

Bowen Sun, Vice Secretary-General | Trip.com Institute

Jason Wang, COO | Global Tourism Economy Forum
Discussion Content
-Urban Tourism will start again after the pandemic has been defeated - but the New Normal will have to use New Practices
-The New Practices of Urban Tourism will help to overcome over-tourism by paying more attention to quality and satisfaction of guests and hosts instead of concentrating on quantity and growth

-The New Practices of Urban Tourism will offer different tourism services to visitors from different source markets at different times of the year and different parts of the city

-The New Practices of Urban Tourism will pay special attention to visitors from the emerging tourism source markets, including China

-The New Practices of Urban Tourism will offer new opportunities for a wider range of cities around the globe

-Join the WTCF / COTRI session to learn from international experts about the New Normal and how to turn the New Practices into sustainable reality
ITB Message from Georgia
Time Thursday, March 11, 15:15 - 15:30 (Berlin Time)

Thursday, March 11, 22:15 - 22:30 (Beijing Time)
Guest Mrs. Natia Turnava, Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development of Georgia
Time Thursday, March 11, 15:20 -15:25 (Berlin Time)

Thursday, March 11, 22:20 - 22:25 (Beijing Time)
Guest Mrs. Mariam Kvrivishvili, Former Head of GNTA and Member of Parliament of Georgia
ITB Roundtable: Restarting of LGBT+ Tourism Greeting from the Spanish Tourism Minister
Time Thursday, March 11, 15:50 - 16:40 (Berlin Time)

Thursday, March 11, 22:50 - 23:40 (Beijing Time)
Guest María Reyes Maroto Illera, Minister of industry, trade and tourism, Spain | Spanish Government

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