UNCTAD launches a website dedicated to the E-Tourism Initiative (http://etourism.unctad.org/). Linking sustainable tourism and Information and communication technologies (ICTs) for development, UNCTAD has developed this Initiative to help developing countries take charge of their own tourism promotion by using ICT tools.
Generating 11 per cent of global gross domestic product (GDP), tourism is one of the world´s largest industries. For many developing countries, and particularly the least developed ones (LDCs), tourism provides a significant potential for poverty reduction, economic growth and development. But at the same time, leakages (repatriation of profits) in the tourism sector are extremely important (up to 85% in some African LDCs).
Well used, ICTs can make developing countries more autonomous and self-sufficient in constructing their own brand images and promoting their own tourist attractions. In maximizing their comparative advantage in this sector, developing countries can adjust their tourism services to suit their own development strategies and become better integrated in the world economy.
