Technical Cooperation Initiatives

UNWTO Silk Road Programme and the UNWTO. Themis Foundation, will be consulting the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), to investigate the possibility of creating ‘Silk Road Knowledge Camps’ (working title), which will be short-term training camps providing junior tourism professionals and local communities with the opportunity to gain practical knowledge and experience in cultural heritage management. The Silk Road Knowledge camps will provide training programmes suited to the needs of individual destinations/products across the Silk Road. These Knowledge Camps will act as a platform for capacity building and development.

It is proposed that the Knowledge Camps will be developed in line with the missions of the participating UN agencies, namely:

• Contribution to the development of responsible, ‎sustainable and universally accessible tourism (UNWTO);
• Help State Parties safeguard World Heritage properties by providing technical assistance and professional training (UNESCO);
• Promotion of quality and efficiency in tourism education and training (UNWTO Themis Foundation);
• Advancing of the UN Millennium Development Goals (all).

The strategic objectives of the Knowledge Camps will be to:

• Contribute to the protection and promotion of heritage sites within Silk Road countries and drive sustainable tourism growth;
• Provide support for Silk Road countries on heritage management in Silk Road countries by providing training for volunteers and host communities on heritage management;
• Stimulate awareness on the importance of protecting and preserving heritage sites;
• Maximise the joint expertise of UNWTO, UNWTO Themis Foundation and UNESCO through collaborative efforts and exchange of know-how.

 Pilot programme opportunities are currently being investigated. Details TBA.