TEHRAN -- Iran has been selected as the vice-chairman of the Committee for the Review of Applications for Affiliate Membership, one of the specialized panels of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). 

The selection was made during an online meeting hosted by Iran on Saturday amongst the members of the committee including Côte d’Ivoire, Jamaica, China, Azerbaijan, and Saudi Arabia, Mohammad Qasemi, the director for marketing and advertising at Iran’s tourism ministry announced. 

The webinar was held simultaneously with the 31st Meeting of the ECO Regional Planning Council (RPC) along with six committees on tourism, roads, and communications, trade, agriculture, industry, and energy to discuss ECO’s programs and plans on each subject in member countries, the official added. 

The Islamic Republic was also appreciated for hosting the 5th International ECO-Silk Road Food Festival in 2019, he added. 

The 6th International ECO-Silk Road Food Festival was also scheduled to be held in the city of Zanjan in 2020, which was postponed indefinitely in an attempt to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. ECO region with an area of more than 8 million square kilometers stretching from central to the south and south-west Asia and a population of around 450 million inhabitants is well-known for its natural beauties, as well as a diversity of its historical-cultural heritage.

Specialized committees of UNWTO Members advise on management and program content. These include: the Programme and Budget Committee, the Committee on Statistics and the Tourism Satellite Account, the Committee on Tourism and Competitiveness, the Committee on Tourism and Sustainability, the World Committee on Tourism Ethics, and the Committee for the Review of Applications for Affiliate Membership. 

The specialized committees are subsidiary organs of the UNWTO Executive Council; except the World Committee on Tourism Ethics which is a subsidiary organ of the General Assembly, and their role is to advise on management and program content.

ABU/AFM