Chairman Duan Qiang Attends Opening Ceremony of International Mayor’s Forum on Tourism – Zhengzhou, China 2021

On the morning of April 21, Duan Qiang, Chairman of WTA, and Liu Shijun, Secretary-General of WTA, attended the Opening Ceremony of International Mayor’s Forum on Tourism – Zhengzhou, China 2021.

Duan said in his speech that during the national strategic opportunity period of promoting the rise of the central region and driving ecological protection and high-quality development of the Yellow River Basin, Henan Province was speeding up its efforts to build itself into an important window for the world to explore and experience Chinese historical civilization and into a tourist destination with international influence. Duan stressed the importance of strengthening international cooperation in the post-epidemic era and expressed willingness to work with WTA members and tourism cities to further exchanges among countries and regions in the world and jointly promote the recovery and revitalization of global tourism and the sustainable and inclusive development.

The International Mayor’s Forum on Tourism – Zhengzhou, China has been successfully held for six times and has gradually developed into a forward-looking and influential tourism event in the global tourism industry. Co-sponsored by the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and the People’s Government of Henan Province, the forum featured “Market Prosperity, Technological Innovation to Improve Urban Tourism Competitiveness”. On the morning of April 22, WTA cooperated with the People’s Government of Zhengzhou City to host the 2^nd WTA Dialogue·City Tourism themed with “Building a Regional Tourism Hub” under the framework of the Mayor’s Forum.

The opening ceremony of the forum was attended by numerous guests, including Zhang Xu, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of China, Wang Guosheng, Party Secretary of the CPC Henan Provincial Committee and Director of the Standing Committee of Henan Provincial People’s Congress, Wang Kai, Deputy Party Secretary of CPC Henan Provincial Committee and acting governor, Jiang Ling, Member of the Standing Committee and Minister of Propaganda Department of CPC Henan Provincial Committee, Xu Liyi, Member of the Standing Committee of CPC Henan Provincial Committee and the Party Secretary of CPC Zhengzhou Municipal Committee, and Sierra Leone’s and Sri Lanka’s ambassadors to China. In addition, Zhu Shanzhong, Executive Director at the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), made a speech through video.