2025.12.16
HARBIN, China, Dec. 16 — The "Global Tourism Economy Forum · Heilongjiang 2025" opened here today. The opening ceremony was presided over by Ms. LIANG Huiling, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Heilongjiang Provincial Committee and Governor of Heilongjiang Province. Mr. ZHANG Xu, Chair of the World Tourism Alliance (WTA), attended the ceremony. Other distinguished guests in attendance included: Mr. Edmund Ho Hau-wah, Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and Chairman of the Global Tourism Economy Forum; Mr. XU Qin, Secretary of the CPC Heilongjiang Provincial Committee and Chairman of the Standing Committee of Heilongjiang Provincial People’s Congress; Mr. Zurab Pololikashvili, Secretary-General of UN Tourism; Ms. Pansy Ho, Secretary-General of the Global Tourism Economy Forum(GTER); Mr. Tai Kin Ip, Secretary for Economy and Finance of the Macao SAR; and Mr. Luo Laijun, Vice Chairman of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce (ACFIC).
The Global Tourism Economy Forum was launched in 2012 by the Global Tourism Economy Research Centre (GTERC). Committed to advancing the sustainable development of the global culture and tourism economy with a focus on China, the forum has been held in Macao for ten consecutive years. The 2025 edition marks its first venture outside Macao. It is co-hosted by the People’s Government of Heilongjiang Province and GTERC, in partnership with UN Tourism and supported by WTA.
The 2025 forum, themed "New Quality Productive Forces: Powering the Global Tourism Economy" featured a packed agenda of keynote speeches, roundtable discussions, cultural and tourism exhibitions, and the Heilongjiang Investment Promotion Conference. It drew over 1,000 participants from more than 30 countries and regions spanning five continents. Attendees included senior officials from the UN Tourism and other international bodies, government representatives from the cultural and tourism administrations of various countries, executives from Fortune Global 500 companies, alongside renowned entrepreneurs, experts, and scholars. The forum is designed to channel high-quality global resources and innovative dynamism into Heilongjiang’s development, fostering international cooperation and sustainable development in the tourism sector.