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Knowledge Nugget | India among top 10 global tourism economies in 2024–25: What UPSC aspirants must know

UPSC Current Affairs: What does the World Travel & Tourism Council’s (WTTC) 2024 Economic Impact Trends Report say about India’s tourism sector? Where does Tourism Index place India? Here’s all you need to know. Also, go 'Beyond the Nugget' to learn about Swadesh Darshan 2.0.

UPSC Current Affairs: India among top 10 global tourism economies in 2024–25: What UPSC aspirants must know

UPSC Current Affairs: Several countries have seen significant jumps in international tourism spending compared to pre-pandemic levels. (Source: AI generated,Freepik)

Take a look at the essential events, concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up your knowledge. Here’s your UPSC current affairs knowledge nugget for today on WTTC’s 2024 Economic Impact Trends Report and Travel and Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2024.

Knowledge Nugget: WTTC’s 2024 Economic Impact Trends Report

Subject: Reports and Indices

(Relevance: UPSC frequently asks questions on reports and indices. The key takeaways from these reports are also essential fodder for your Mains examination for intricate points. In 2012, a question was asked in relation to the Multidimensional Poverty Index; in 2019, the question appeared on the Global Competitiveness Report. Therefore, it becomes important to know about the indices and reports that are in the news.)

Why in the news?

Amid a strong post-pandemic recovery and despite various challenges, the global travel and tourism sector contributed US$10.9 trillion to the world economy in 2023, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). The WTTC’s 2024 Economic Impact Trends Report shows the industry on an upward trajectory, with the World Economic Forum (WEF) forecasting the sector to hit $16 trillion by 2034, representing over 11 per cent of global GDP. In this context, let’s know where India stands globally in terms of tourism economy and highlights of the Travel and Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2024.

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Key Takeaways :

1. As per the WTTC, the United States remains the world’s largest tourism economy in 2024, contributing an unprecedented $2.36 trillion, nearly double that of its closest competitor. China ranks second with $1.3 trillion, and is projected to become the global leader within the next decade.

2. While established players like Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and Spain continue to hold strong positions in the top 10, Asian economies such as Hong Kong SAR, Malaysia, and the Philippines are fast emerging as regional tourism powerhouses. Japan, notably, climbs to fourth place with a $297 billion contribution.

Top 10 largest global travel economies in 2024–25
Rank	Country	Economic Contribution (US$, billion)
1	United States	$2,360B
2	China	$1,300B
3	Germany	$487.6B
4	Japan	$297B
5	United Kingdom	$295.2B
6	France	$264.7B
7	Mexico	$261.6B
8	India	$231.6B
9	Italy	$231.3B
10	Spain	$227.9B

Source: WTTC Economic Impact Research (EIR)

3. India has also made notable progress, now ranking as the eighth-largest tourism economy worldwide with a contribution of $231.6 billion, up from its previous position of tenth. This advancement highlights the country’s increasing significance in the sector, with the WTTC forecasting a rise to fourth position within the next decade.

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4. Several countries have also seen significant jumps in international tourism spending compared to pre-pandemic levels. These include Saudi Arabia (+91.3 per cent), Türkiye (+38.2 per cent), Kenya (+33.3 per cent), Colombia (+29.1 per cent), and Egypt (+22.9 per cent).

Having known the key highlights of WTTC’s 2024 Economic Impact Trends Report, let’s now learn the key takeaways of a significant global travel and tourism index.

Travel and Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2024

1. The Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI) 2024, released by the WEF, is the second edition of an index that evolved from the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index (TTCI) series, a flagship index of the WEF that has been in production since 2007.

2. According to WEF’s official site, “The TTDI is part of the Forum’s broader work with industry and government stakeholders to build a more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient future for economies and local communities.”

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3. The TTDI is a biennial index. It measures the set of factors and policies that enable the sustainable and resilient development of the T&T sector, which in turn contributes to the development of a country.

4. In TTDI 2024, among the 119 countries, the US topped the list. After the US, Spain, Japan, France and Australia figure among the top five in the 2024 list. High-income economies in Europe and Asia-Pacific continued to lead the index.

Top 5 countries in TTDI 2024
Rank	Country	Score
1	United States	5.24
2	Spain	5.18
3	Japan	5.09
4	France	5.07
5	Australia	5.00

Source: World Economic Forum, compiled by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation.

5. Notably, in Southeast Asia, India ranks 39th as the TTDI’s top lower-middle-income economy. It was ranked 54th in the previously published index in 2021.

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6. The index, prepared in collaboration with the University of Surrey, showed India is highly price-competitive (18th) and boasts competitive Air Transport (26th) and Ground and Port (25th) infrastructure.

7. In particular, India’s strong Natural (6th), Cultural (9th) and Non-Leisure (9th) Resources help drive travel, and the country is only one of three to score in the top 10 for all the resource pillars, the WEF said.

BEYOND THE NUGGET: Swadesh Darshan 2.0

1. The Swadesh Darshan Scheme was launched by the Centre in 2014-15 for the integrated development of theme-based tourist circuits. Under the scheme, the Ministry of Tourism provides financial assistance to states and Union territories for the development of tourism infrastructure.

2. Prominent circuits launched under the scheme included Buddhist Circuit, North-East Circuit, Ramayana Circuit, Wildlife Circuit, Rural Circuit etc. However, the scheme could not take off in a way it was expected to, mainly because resources had to be distributed and spread across several states, with too many stakeholders being involved.

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3. Therefore, Swadesh Darshan 2.0, focussing on one destination at a time, to attract domestic tourists, was conceptualised.

4. According to the official site of Swadesh Darshan 2.0, “With the mantra of ‘vocal for local’, the revamped scheme, namely Swadesh Darshan 2.0, seeks to attain ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’ by realising India’s full potential as a tourism destination. Swadesh Darshan 2.0 is a generational shift to evolve the Swadesh Darshan Scheme as a holistic mission to develop sustainable and responsible tourism destinations covering tourism and allied infrastructure, tourism services, human capital development, destination management and promotion backed by policy and institutional reforms.”

Post Read Question

The Travel & Tourism Development Index 2024 is released by:

(a) Economist Intelligence Unit

(b) United Nations Development Programme

(d) World Bank

Answer key

(c)

(Sources: World’s top 10 biggest tourism economies in 2024–25: India breaks into top 10 at this rank, India’s global travel and tourism index rank up at 39th: WEF index,Swadesh Darshan 2.0,sd2.tourism.gov.in)

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Roshni Yadav

Roshni Yadav is a Deputy Copy Editor with The Indian Express. She is an alumna of the University of Delhi and Jawaharlal Nehru University, where she pursued her graduation and post-graduation in Political Science. She has over five years of work experience in ed-tech and media. At The Indian Express, she writes for the UPSC section. Her interests lie in national and international affairs, governance, economy, and social issues. You can contact her via email: roshni.yadav@indianexpress.com ... Read More

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