Desert destination.

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Global tourism leaders gather in Dubai today to plot future strategy for an industry which, despite a slight downward revision of annual growth estimates, is easily bucking present economic trends. As around 1,000 delegates gather for the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) summit,A talk will likely focus on ensuring adequate infrastructure for future growth and mitigating tourism's well-documented impact on the environment.

Airlines, tour operators and hotel chains will be joined by around 40 government ministers as the WTTC, which began as a select club in 1990 by the chiefs of Amex, Accor, British Airways and American Airlines, comes truly of age. WTTC projections show tourism will this year generate $8.4 trillion in

revenue despite the revised growth projection of three per cent compared to 3.9 per cent last year.

That represents almost ten per cent of the world's gross domestic product (GDP), providing employment for 238 million people across the globe. And all this despite the worldwide credit crunch, the spectre of recession in the US, surging oil and food prices and worries over climate change - each of which have played their part in trimming initial growth projections of 4.6 per cent.

"Over the next ten years, we will see an explosion in activity throughout our sector," said Jean-Paul Baumgarten, who is the president of the London-based organisation. "It's up to us to see this industry develop responsibly," he added.

By 2018, the WTTC expects annual tourism expenditure to rise by an average of 4.4 per cent. Baumgarten cites a tourism "boom" fuelled by emerging economic powerhouses in China, India, Russia and the Middle East, although he recognises the sector faces its challenges, not least the carbon footprint left by the ongoing exponential growth in air travel.

"We are part of the problem because our industry is responsible for between 11 and 12 per cent of [all] CO2 emissions, but we are also part of the solution," he added, with an eye on one of the major themes of the Dubai conference, which runs until Tuesday. Another major issue up for discussion is the eternal question of how to develop national tourist infrastructures in line with demand, with Baumgarten speaking of "great concern" within his body at the "lack of planning [shown] by the majority of governments around the world".

Dubai, he said, offers an example to all, with the UAE government "turning a desert into a destination", he added. Difficulties in recruitment within different branches of the industry could also put the brakes on its growth, with Baumgarten saying that the two giants of the sector, the US and China, are suffering from a shortage of qualified staff.

However, the WTTC's growing strength - these days it counts around 100 influential members within its ranks - means that its global lobbying power has risen considerably. The turning-point in that process can be traced back to the September 11 attacks on the US back in 2001, Baumgarten said. "Governments the world over realised then the enormous impact tourism has on the economy and started listening to us," he added.

[c] 2007 Al Sidra Media LLC

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