Hotel Resilient Initiative Strengthening the Resilience of the Tourism Sector UNISDR Asia Partnership Meeting Bangkok, June 5th 2015 With support from the German Government through

Source: UNWTO Tourism Highlights 2014 Why Tourism Matters?

Source: UNWTO Tourism Highlights 2014 Trends & Forecast The UNWTO World Tourism Barometer 2015 indicates that international tourist arrivals have reached a record with 1,138 million arrivals worldwide in 2014.

Tourism is a major economic sector in Asia Pacific Travel and tourism’s direct contribution to GDP was US$694 billion (equivalent to 3%) in Asia Pacific (Northeast Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia and Oceania). In Southeast Asia, it is 4.8% of GDP. Visitor Exports (money spent by foreign visitors to a country) for 2014 was $397 billion. Travel & Tourism generated 64,001,000 jobs directly in 2014 (3.7% of total employment) and is forecast to grow by 1.8% in 2015 to 65,161,500 (3.7% of total employment). Source: WTCC: The Economic Impact of Travel & Tourism Trends & Forecast

Source: PATA Visitor Forecasts Trends & Forecast

Economic losses from disasters are now reaching an average of US$ US$300 billion each year Tourism is one of the most severely exposed sectors (GAR 13)  location of many destinations in hazard prone areas  unfamiliarity of tourist with environment and hazards  hotel industry is often unable to address and manage natural hazards  emphasis on disaster response rather than reducing risks The Vulnerability of the Tourism Sector

Objective: To improve disaster risk management and strengthen resilience in the tourism industry. Who: UNISDR, PATA and GIZ/GIDRM Approach: Work with public and private partners in the field of tourism and disaster risk management to develop instruments that reduce disaster risks of hotels to natural and technological hazards. Tailored components for larger hotels and SMEs according to their requirements and capacities. The Hotel Resilient Initiative

Current Focus Countries: Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Philippines and Thailand Main outcomes: Conduct a Market Study to verify the needs of standards Raise awareness and promote the Hotel Resilient initiative (tourism/ DRM Events and Conference) Develop risk management standards and pilot them up to 3 selected destinations The Hotel Resilient Initiative

Semi-structured interviews with 17 representatives of government agencies, hotel industry, hotel and tourism associations, tour operators, and insurance companies in Indonesia, the Maldives, the Philippines, and Thailand. Key areas included:  Hotel Risk Management Strategies  Benefits and Barriers to Adoption of Standards  Marketability of Risk Management  Needs of the tourism sector The Market Study – Methodology

Hotel Risk Management Strategies  Independent hotels rely on their experience to develop risk management strategies  Chain hotels tend to have individual standards and audited systems in disaster management  There are some legislated requirements for risk management in hotels Benefits and Barriers to Adoption of Standards  The need for developing standardized standards for disaster resilience is supported by many in the industry  Main barriers - cost, time, capacity, structures The Market Study – Findings

Marketability of Risk Management  Insurers do reduce premiums due to effective risk management practices  Tour operators / travel agencies and those booking conferences or corporate retreats demand information on risk management and risk assessments  Disaster risks are not a significant factor in tourist destination and hotel selection yet, but risk awareness is growing Needs of the tourism sector  Information sharing and partnerships are important  The importance of training  Diverse needs in destinations The Market Study – Findings

1. Develop standardized standards 2. Work with hotel industry leaders 3. Reflect relevant legislation 4. Promote both legislative and market forces 5. Focus on business to business marketing of the Initiative 6. Engage global insurers and industry associations 7. Create local partnerships among stakeholders 8. Consider the needs of the industry 9. Consider certification in phase two of the Initiative The Market Study – Recommendations

2015 Publish Market Study on ‘Disaster Resilience in Hotels and Destinations’ Development of risk management standards with a technical partner in a selected pre-pilot destination in Asia-Pacific region 2016 Call of bids and selection of up to three pilot destinations in the Asia-Pacific region based on predefined criteria Next Steps

Thank you very much for your attention! For further information please contact: Hanna Maier (GIDRM/GIZ) Brigitte Leoni (UNISDR) Paul Pruangkarn (PATA) With support from the German Government through