- Based in Madrid with the support of the Government of Spain,
Mastercard will help drive a global sustainable and inclusive
recovery for tourism
- The Tourism Innovation Hub will carry out research, leverage
data insights and co-design technology solutions for the sector,
utilizing Mastercard tools and network
- Being located in Spain leverages the expertise of a country
intrinsically linked to tourism and the second most visited
destination in the world
Mastercard announced today the establishment of a new Tourism
Innovation Hub in Spain, with the support of the Spanish
Government. The Hub, based in Madrid and which will open in the
second quarter of 2022, will develop solutions to support a
sustainable and inclusive recovery for the global tourism sector
through innovation, research and collaboration across the
ecosystem. The initiative was ratified today, at the FITUR
International Tourism Fair, between Reyes Maroto, Spain’s Minister
of Industry, Trade and Tourism, and Mark Barnett, President of
Mastercard Europe.
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the full release here:
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From left to right: Mark Barnett,
President of Mastercard Europe and Reyes Maroto, Minister of
Industry, Trade and Tourism. (Photo: Business Wire)
In 2019, travel and tourism represented 10.4% of global GDP but
nearly halved to 5.5% in 2020 - similarly international visitors
spent US$1,691.5 billion in 2019 and the amount dropped to US$517.6
billion in 20201. And according to its latest forecast, the World
Tourism Organization (UNWTO) estimates that international tourist
arrivals remained 70 to 75 percent below 2019 levels last year2.
The impact also goes beyond GDP figures, with the industry playing
a vital role in generating jobs and creating opportunities for
micro and small businesses around the world.
But despite the clear challenges, Mastercard data shows that
there are opportunities for a robust recovery in the relatively
near future. Many consumers are looking at how to spend their share
of the extra US$5 trillion saved since the onset of COVID-193, and
travel ranks second only to eating out as the out-of-home activity
most missed during lockdowns4. There has been a clear willingness
to travel that has been determined by pandemic-related
restrictions.
“There has been a multi-trillion dollar impact on the global
tourism industry over the past couple of years, but Mastercard is
committed to enabling innovation and ensuring that technology is
harnessed for a more inclusive, equitable and sustainable
recovery,” said Mark Barnett, President of Mastercard Europe. “The
Tourism Innovation Hub will foster programs and build partnerships
which will help the industry recover and drive more inclusive and
sustainable tourism growth. Being located in Spain will allow us to
leverage the expertise of a country intrinsically linked to tourism
and the second most visited destination in the world."
According to the Spanish Minister of Industry, Trade and
Tourism, Reyes Maroto: "The Spanish Government believes that now is
the time for us to work together to build the future of our
post-pandemic tourism model. We are going to stop measuring the
success of the Spanish tourism model exclusively by the increase in
the number of tourists - we must now go beyond this and focus on
quality, profitability, innovation and sustainability, as well as
social inclusion and territorial cohesion. There is no time to lose
in taking up this challenge. And we all need to work together - the
institutions and the private sector - strengthening our alliances
and bringing other partners on board so that the Spanish tourism
sector maintains its international leadership."
UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili added: “Tourism’s
future will be driven by new ideas, new business methods and
through joined-up solutions to overcome challenges and fulfil our
sector’s enormous potential. UNWTO warmly welcomed the creation of
a new Tourism Innovation Hub and looks forward to working closely
with Mastercard to harness the power of data and creativity to
build a more inclusive and sustainable sector.”
The Tourism Innovation Hub will act as a global platform for
industry research, tourism strategy development and the co-creation
of tailored products and solutions, through partnerships and
initiatives such as:
- Thought Leadership: leveraging data insights and
capturing target consumer insights to identify trends and inform
policy decision-making.
- Development Center: co-creating new products and
services, codifying best practices and serving as a platform to
bring together public and private sector partners to innovate
together.
- Labs As A Service: designing, developing and testing new
products and platforms that deliver digital first, sustainable and
inclusive solutions for the industry, which address common business
and consumer priorities.
Supporting the Global Tourism Industry
Mastercard’s trusted network and leading technology stands at
the heart of the global tourism industry:
- Facilitating payments so tourists can spend safely, securely
and easily when they travel abroad
- Enabling digital payments acceptance for small businesses to
allow them to benefit from the tourism economy
- Working with travel agents, airlines, hospitality providers and
many others across the ecosystem
- Building loyalty through engagement programs and Priceless
Experiences, giving tourists tailored access to the best and most
exciting opportunities when they explore or return to preferred
destinations
- Partnering with tourism agencies to supporting businesses in
the tourism industry and encouraging inbound tourism through
digital vouchers and incentive schemes
- Providing data insights to governments and tourism agencies to
identify trends and inform strategies, including through the
Mastercard Economics Institute Insights Reports, as well as
executing inbound tourism campaigns.
Sustainable tourism will be a key focus, and there will be close
collaboration between the Tourism Innovation Hub and Mastercard’s
Sustainability Innovation Lab, to help empower governments,
businesses and consumers to transform how they adapt and create new
sustainable tourism innovations in destination, travel,
accommodation, experience, rewards and incentives and other
services.
Alongside this, Mastercard is working with the UNWTO,
headquartered in Madrid, across a range of initiatives. For
example, last year the company supported the UNWTO SDGs Global
Startup Competition, providing mentorship to innovative small
businesses that are enabling sustainable and responsible tourism
around the world.
In Spain, Mastercard has a well-established track record of
supporting the tourism industry, as part of the broader work with
governments and cities around the world adapt their tourism
strategies. In 2020, Mastercard's data intelligence tools helped
the City Councils of Madrid and Barcelona identify how the flow of
tourists were being impacted, helping them draw a roadmap to
recover post-pandemic tourism. Additionally, in May last year,
together with Turespaña, Mastercard announced the first Security
Perception Index, which measures the level of confidence shown by
visitors in Spain’s health-measures.
The Tourism Innovation Hub becomes part of Mastercard's network
of global centers of excellence around the world, including the
Intelligence and Cyber Centre in Canada, the Fintech-Cyber
Innovation Lab in Israel, the Mastercard Lab for Financial
Inclusion in Kenya, and the Sustainability Innovation Lab in
Sweden, as well as Tech Hubs in Dublin and New York City.
About Mastercard
Mastercard is a global technology company in the payments
industry. Our mission is to connect and power an inclusive, digital
economy that benefits everyone, everywhere by making transactions
safe, simple, smart and accessible. Using secure data and networks,
partnerships and passion, our innovations and solutions help
individuals, financial institutions, governments and businesses
realize their greatest potential. Our decency quotient, or DQ,
drives our culture and everything we do inside and outside of our
company. With connections across more than 210 countries and
territories, we are building a sustainable world that unlocks
priceless possibilities for all. www.mastercard.com
1 “Travel & Tourism Economic Impact 2021.” World Travel
& Tourism Council, June 2021. 2 “UNWTO World Tourism
Barometer.” UNWTO, November 2021 3 “Recovery Insights: Ready for
Takeoff?” Mastercard Economics Institute, June 2021. 4 “Recovery
Insights: The Shift to Digital.” Mastercard Economics Institute,
June 2020.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220120005584/en/
Media Contact Jim Issokson Europe Communications
james.issokson@mastercard.com
Ana Díaz Sacristán Spain Communications
ana.diazsacristan@mastercard.com
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