The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) has given its Icon Award to Francesco Frangialli, the former Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization, the council said on October 8.
Frangialli led the Madrid-based organisation, now known as UN Tourism, from 1997 to 2009. In 2003, during his tenure, it became a specialised agency of the United Nations, giving tourism ministries a seat in the UN system alongside agencies for aviation, labour and health. The economic impact frameworks developed in that period, led by the Tourism Satellite Account, remain the basis on which governments measure tourism’s contribution to GDP and jobs. The award puts the private-sector council’s spotlight on a public body as WTTC prepares to move its own headquarters to Madrid, a move formalised with Spain’s government in January.
“Professor Francesco Frangialli fundamentally changed the way tourism is recognised globally. By bringing tourism into the United Nations family, he ensured our sector had a place within the world’s most important international institutions and a voice heard by governments around the world,” said Gloria Guevara, WTTC’s President and CEO.
Frangialli received the award at a VIP dinner during WTTC’s 26th Global Summit in Valletta, Malta, which drew more than 1,000 delegates, including over 200 travel and tourism chief executives and government ministers. The summit focused on destination competitiveness, investment and job creation.
The WTTC Icon Award recognises individuals whose lifetime contribution has shaped destinations, institutions or the sector itself. The council also honoured Frank Rainieri, the developer of the Dominican Republic’s Punta Cana resort area, with an Icon Award at the same dinner.
Frangialli is an honorary professor at the School of Hotel and Tourism Management at Hong Kong Polytechnic University. His books include International Tourism: The Great Turning Point, published in 2004, and Le nouvel état touristique, published in 2009.