Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- During the 25th anniversary session of the General Assembly of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in Samarkand, the incumbent Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili was given the opportunity to be re-elected to continue his career.

Zurab Pololikashvili became the Secretary-General of UNWTO in 2017. In 2022, he was re-elected for a second term during the 24th session of the General Assembly in Madrid. His current term as Secretary-General expires in 2025. In the same year, at the 26th session of the UNWTO General Assembly, which will take place in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, there will be another election for the Secretary-General of the organization.

It is worth noting that under the leadership of Zurab Pololikashvili, positive changes have been made in UNWTO. The number of foreign tourists in member countries of UNWTO has significantly increased. In particular, in 2022, Uzbekistan was visited by 5.2 million foreign tourists, while in 2023, the number increased to 7 million.

It should be noted separately that despite the pandemic, Z. Pololikashvili conducted various events aimed at developing the tourism industry. As a result, the tourism industry has maintained stability and is actively developing in the post-pandemic period.

Furthermore, the number of member countries of UNWTO is growing. Unprecedented success has been achieved in financial management over the past two years: in 2023, the organization's regular budget revenues reached 14.3 million euros. Zurab Pololikashvili has repeatedly stated that these funds will be spent on developing the tourism industry in member countries of the organization.

It is worth mentioning that currently, UNWTO has 186 employees representing 58 nationalities. The organization supports young talents and adheres to the principle of gender equality.

As the Secretary-General of UNWTO, Z. Pololikashvili intends to further strengthen his activities in the development of tourism in member countries of the organization. In the near future, priority will be given to countries such as Argentina, China, India, and Uzbekistan. The organization has also identified the further development of the tourism sector through expanding education, increasing investments, and implementing consistent reforms as a priority.