20 March 2020 WBG support for tourism cli nts nd d stin tions durin th COVID-19 crisis. WBG is curr ntl supportin th the market to be irresponsible. The most forward- d v lopm nt of tourism in ov r thinking industry and destination brands have taken the opportunity to show sensitivity and build trust - 40 tourism d stin tions cross Estonia adapted their campaign on Twitter from th world, ll of whom will b hit ‘Visit Estonia’ to ‘Visit Estonia, later’ #stayhome. to v r in d r s b th ff cts We fully appreciate the importance of tourism for of COVID-19 outbr k. economic growth and livelihoods around the world. The latest figures from the World Travel and Tourism W r d pl conc rn d Council, which represents the global Travel and Tourism bout th volvin n tur of private sector, show that 50 million jobs are at risk in the th p nd mic nd xpr ss our sector globally, a reduction in jobs of between 12 and solid rit nd commitm nt to 14 percent.1 In many countries tourism is the largest supportin our cli nts to cop contributor to GDP, forex and employment, particularly for vulnerable groups, women and youth. nd r cov r from this crisis. The crash is affecting large and small businesses alike. The Centre for Aviation (CAPA) suggests by the end of May many airlines will be driven into Before we can embark on a recovery in tourism, bankruptcy as government bans on travel increase.2 we must bring the public health emergency UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili under control. The longer the crisis is extended, stressed that “small- and medium-sized enterprises the worse the economic impact will be for make up around 80 percent of the tourism sector destinations. In line with WHO guidance, we all and are particularly exposed with millions of have a responsibility to do our part to ‘flatten the livelihoods across the world, including within curve’ and curb the transmission of the disease. vulnerable communities, relying on tourism”. This means restricting movement and reducing all The situation is evolving so rapidly it is difficult to forms of interaction, including travel. know when the period of recovery will begin. In the At the start of the crisis many unaffected immediate term, actors in different countries are destinations invested in marketing campaigns implementing crisis measures to protect the industry to attract those who still wished to travel. In just as much as possible, until a recovery phase can begin. a few weeks the global response has shifted to Following is a non-exhaustive list of examples. Where such an extent that the marketing of any kind of various actions can be coordinated and integrated travel, even domestic, is largely considered by together, the recovery is likely to be quicker. 1 https://www.wttc.org/about/media-centre/press-releases/press-releases/2020/coronavirus-puts-up-to-50-million-travel-and-tourism-jobs-at-risk-says-wttc/ 2 https://cdn.centreforaviation.com/analysis/reports/covid-19-by-the-end-of-may-most-world-airlines-will-be-bankrupt-517512 Planning and communication. Destination the U.S. Small Business Administration response,8 communities and associations are forming virtual as well as extending lines of credit or working capital. emergency response groups, with typical objectives Reducing debt. Banks are extending mortgage including: relief and deferrals in loan repayments. • Developing a plan of united action (e.g. agree Generating alternative revenues. Destinations and that all attractions close). industry are considering innovative ways to maintain • Setting up monitoring and communication some revenue while discouraging travel. For example, services with buyers, both trade and consumers, these include pay-it forward voucher schemes, such as through dedicated social media channels. the ‘I Love Manchester Scheme’9;‘consume-at-home’ Through these channels, destinations can verify content; developing virtual tours; creating destination and consolidate information, and build trust audio-guides; restaurant or hotel-branded online with buyers. All communications3 should focus cooking, yoga and spa classes; and delivery services transparently on the health risks, cases, and (restaurants, etc.). mitigation measures. Some examples include Minimizing revenue loss. Industry is waiving ‘Visit Copenhagen’ and Saltzburg, Austria. rebooking charges and incentivizing guests to postpone instead of cancel. • Agreeing on the most important asks from government, financial sector, industry Redeploying assets. Destinations are examining associations, employee unions, etc. opportunities to re-deploy staff or tourism assets to support the public health agenda, such as retraining Informing the industry. Governments and flight attendants to support testing facilities or using associations can prepare advice and updates on hotels as health care facilities for low risk patients. all measures being taken for the industry and/ Singapore is subsidizing paid training programs for or their members – and how to access support. staff who are laid-off, covering 90% of wages for Examples include the National Federation of the hourly workers. Self-employed and Small Businesses in the United Kingdom, showing a comprehensive breakdown of all the measures being taken.4 In th comin w ks, w will work Reducing tax burden. Governments are suspending with our p rtn rs to provid r li bl or reducing income tax payments, business rates, inform tion nd d t on wh t to xp ct VAT and other fees applicable to business, including PAYE deferral and paid sick leave to provide relief nd wh t w c n l rn from p st cris s to staff on reduced incomes. For example, New th t ff ct d tourism – for x mpl , Zealand5 announced large-scale tax relief packages, th lob l fin nci l crisis, H1N1, SARS, and Myanmar6 has waived 2 percent advanced tsun mis, Ebol , nd how to int rpr t income tax on exports. th imp cts for diff r nt d stin tions. Contamination support. Governments are allocating Wh r w h v xistin tourism financial support and/or supplies to businesses to pro r ms with d stin tion cli nts, w manage the costs of physically dealing with the effects of the virus (deep clean services, etc.), for example will do v r thin w c n to r dir ct Singapore Cleaning Support Fund for Hotels.7 pro r m r sourc s to h lp ddr ss th imm di t conc rns, nd support cli nt Providing liquidity. Governments, financial institutions and other bodies applying grants, funds or alternative ov rnm nts to pr p r for r cov r . capital for those most at risk (SMEs), for example see 3 https://destinationthink.com/blog/covid-19-pandemic-rational-leadership-tourism-destinations/ 4 https://www.fsb.org.uk/campaign/covid19.html 5 https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/03/covid-19-12-billion-package-includes-wage-subsidies-tax-relief-and-sick-leave-support-amid-coronavirus-pandemic.html 6 https://www.irrawaddy.com/news/burma/myanmar-govt-suspends-advance-tax-exports-aid-virus-hit-businesses.html 7 https://www.stb.gov.sg/content/stb/en/assistance-and-licensing/Support-for-Cleaning-Disinfection-Costs.html 8 https://www.sba.gov/disaster-assistance/coronavirus-covid-19?utm_medium=email&utm_sourcegov=delivery&fbclid= IwAR3fOEDzo8tZV9ZVOqnO5WlyTA6RBhCAIjHR6RL6CNxkv6ZfwWkoy2cVCfo 9 https://ilovemanchester.com/pay-it-forward-voucher-scheme-manchester-restaurants/