Yang Haodong, a Member of Standing Committee and Director-General of Publicity Department of CPC Hunan Provincial Committee: Hunan to Contribute to Full Recovery and High-quality Development of World Tourism Industry

On 10 May, the World Tourism Cities Federation Changsha Fragrant Hills Tourism Summit 2023 (hereinafter referred to as the "Summit") officially kicked off in Changsha, China. Themed "Gathering the Strength of Cities to Revitalize World Tourism", the Summit was jointly hosted by the World Tourism Cities Federation (WTCF) and Changsha Municipal People's Government. Yang Haodong, a member of the Standing Committee and Director-General of the Publicity Department of the CPC Hunan Provincial Committee, attended the Summit and delivered a speech.

Yang Haodong, a member of the Standing Committee and Director-General of the Publicity Department of the CPC Hunan Provincial Committee, delivers a speech.

During the Summit, Yang presented to the audience the extraordinary scenery of mountains and water, profound history and culture, the time-honored "red gene", and other cultural and tourism resources of Hunan. He mentioned that, in recent years, Hunan has been building five "tourism brands" and tourism has become a focus for investors, an area of special interest to consumers, and a highlight for opening up. As the capital of Hunan Province, Changsha also stands as an important city along the Belt and Road, one of the most popular tourist destinations and the most popular city for night tourism in China. In addition, the city has been listed as one of the "Top Ten Cities to Travel to in China" in the ranking of "Wonderful Chinese Cities for Living". It is also an internet-famous city beloved by many tourists.

In his congratulatory message to the 22nd session of the UNWTO General Assembly, Chinese President Xi Jinping pointed out that tourism serves as a significant channel of communication between different countries and cultures, an effective tool to boost the economy and create jobs, and an important industry to improve people's living standards.

While delivering his speech, Yang proposed that under the theme of "Gathering the Strength of Cities to Revitalize World Tourism", the Summit works in accord with the development trends of world tourism, with great significance in facilitating exchanges and cooperation among world tourism cities, building confidence for world tourism development, and promoting economic recovery. "We will build Hunan into a fascinating homeland-like place, a green bucolic province, and a wonderland of happiness, by adhering to the concept of 'Better City Life through Tourism', to contribute to the full recovery and high-quality development of world tourism," said Yang.

Yang further expressed his hope to deepen and expand cooperation with Chinese and foreign tourism cities, as well as tourism organizations through WTCF as a major platform for mutual benefits and win-win outcomes, to jointly contribute to the prosperous future the world economy.