While addressing the virtual plenary session of the ‘Second Travel, Tourism & Hospitality e-Conclave organised by FICCI, Suman Billa, Director, United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNTWO), Technical Cooperation & Silk Road Development, said that countries that can achieve quick and complete vaccination are going to race ahead and kick-start their economies sooner. Countries that are prioritizing vaccination will reach optimum level of production sooner. This will widen economic disparities across the world.
While further elaborating on this, Billa said that COVID will level playing fields across the globe and vaccination will play an important role in this aspect.
“Whether I am in Sri Lanka, India, or any part of the world, if I had my two shots of the vaccine and I have a certificate to prove it, I should be able to travel. There is going to be some amount of asymmetry on this front. From an Indian perspective, therefore, what we need to do is to well and truly open up travel, especially for those who are vaccinated. For international travellers, we need to jettison the principle of reciprocity.”
