Impact of WTO on Growth and Development of International Tourism

The multilateral framework under World Trade Organization (WTO) aims to promote trade in goods and services across borders. International tourism falls under General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) that provides a framework for international trade in services. Cross-border movement of consumers i.e. tourists forms a typical characteristic of international tourism as a service. Over the years, the tourism destinations as well as tourists by way of their origin have witnessed a gradual but steady shift from developed to developing countries as delineated in the paper. Tourism has become the propulsion for economic development in a number of developing countries contributing significantly to employment, foreign exchange earnings and economic growth. Since then, tourism has the greatest number of GATS commitments; progressive liberalization of tourism under GATS has enormous impacts on growth and development of other sectors. This paper makes an in-depth analysis of patterns of international tourism especially with reference to WTO agreements. It critically evaluates GATS and its impact on patterns of international tourism. At the end, an attempt is made to suggest a strategic framework to promote international tourism with special focus on developing countries. The data collection points applied in the paper comprise of United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) and the WTO secretariat.