Next month, UN Tourism will meet for its General Assembly in Riyadh to confirm the next UN-Tourism secretary general. eTN is not invited to witness whether the newly suggested Secretary General-elect, Shaikha Al Nowais, will replace Zurab Pololikashvili.
Zurab remains in charge of this organization until the end of the year, despite some countries, including Czechia, had advocated for a deputy to take over his affairs.
Zurab Pololikashvili has been the most controversial Secretary General in the history of the organization and was accused of manipulation in two elections to get into this position.
When the Executive Council met in Spain in March and nominated the candidate from the United Arab Emirates, Shaikha Al Nowais, it was a surprise that few people or member countries had predicted. Shaikha was in Madrid, surrounded by a large and busy government delegation from her home country, and was noticed by most after she was suddenly elected.
There is not much (good or bad) known about the upcoming Secretary General, according to extensive outreach by this publication, except that she is the daughter of a wealthy and powerful hotel group owner. She has no prior public sector experience, which could be good when starting from a clean slate.
If confirmed in Riyadh, she will lead the World Tourism Organization for four years starting January 1, 2026. If confirmed, Shaikha would be the first woman to lead this affiliated United Nations organization.
The UN-Tourism Executive Council, which voted for Shaikah, is 20% of the overall UN-Tourism member countries. This vote needs to be confirmed by the majority of all UN-Tourism members at the upcoming General Assembly in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
During the two terms Mr. Pololikashvili was in charge of global tourism, there was not a single press conference, unlike under the previous leaders. After it was confirmed that Shaikha Al Nowais would participate in the WTTC summit, attending media in Rome were excited to ask questions, but the opportunity did not materialize. eTN reached out repeatedly to meet Shaikah, but this request was not responded to – even after the event.
Shaikha Al Nowais had a 10-minute on-stage discussion with interim WTTC CEO Gloria Guevara and Italian Minister of Tourism the Hon. Daniela Santanchè. Ironically, Gloria was running against Shaikha Al Nowais at this year’s election for UN-Tourism Secretary General.
The time on stage between Gloria and Shaikah was brief but pleasant. Shaikah appeared to be a very friendly, delightful, soft-spoken, and humble lady.
She promised to listen and support the best tourism village program that the UNWTO has launched. She said she visited several of the best villages awarded by UN-Tourism and could confirm the positive economic impact this program had. She added that she just arrived from Buenos Aires. She mentioned the best tourism village program in connection with over- and under-tourism.
Shaikah agreed on the importance of working with WTTC and the private sector and pledged to increase the number of affiliated members in UN-Tourism.
She said, private stakeholders are the heart of the tourism industry, and she repeated that she would listen to them on how to work together.
Shaikah touched on the issue of safety and security, knowing the WTTC Rome summit took place during the peak of geopolitical conflicts.
