Upholding Multilateral Values: Time for Renewal, Rotation, and Inclusive Leadership at UN Tourism is the message by one of the most respected personality in global tourism.
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Gloria Guevara from Mexico and Harry Theoharis from Greece are the two leading candidates competing against Zurab Pololikashvili’s tainted ambition to win the upcoming election for UN-Tourism Secretary General. Gloria and Harry share a common goal:
Preventing a third term for a Secretary-General of the UN-Tourism
Both candidates, Guevara and Theoharis, are trying their utmost to win this election. Despite outside pressure, both say they tried to talk to the other to run this campaign as a team, but the other didn’t want to talk.
Dr. Taleb Rifai, the former Secretary-General for the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), who was essential for Zurab Pololikashvili to be in his chair, has, over the years, many times regretted and reversed his support for Pololikashvili as a huge mistake. This mistake, which peaked at the UNWTO General Assembly in Chengdu, China, in 2017, allowed Zurab to manipulate rules in his favor, convincing his strongest opponent at the time, Walter Mzembi, to let go of his intervention and accept a position in UNWTO he never got.
From his home in Jordan today, Dr. Taleb Rifai said it was time for a woman to take the lead and stand up against a third term by Zurab Pololikashvili. He thanked eTurboNews for putting his public statement into the open:
PUBLIC STATEMENT by Dr. Taleb Rifai:
Dr. Taleb Rifai, Former Secretary-General of the UNWTO (2010–2017)
Upholding Multilateral Values: Time for Renewal, Rotation, and Inclusive Leadership at UN Tourism
As a former Secretary-General of UN Tourism, I remain deeply committed to the principles that uphold the integrity of the multilateral system and the credibility of international organizations: transparency, inclusion, balance, and institutional renewal.
In this spirit, I must state clearly: A third-term mandate for any Secretary-General, let alone the current Secretary-General, runs counter to the foundational values of leadership and regional balance that sustain our global institutions. These principles exist to guarantee legitimacy, fairness, and member states’ trust.
Tourism is entering a new era. The sector needs fresh leadership—grounded in experience, knowledge, and expertise—and ready to meet today’s global challenges with unity, responsibility, and vision.
It is also time to act on the values we promote. Diversity and inclusion must be reflected at the highest level of leadership. I have always promoted female leadership as a fundamental pillar of a more inclusive and forward-looking tourism sector; I am who I am. For this reason, I believe that the next Secretary-General of UN Tourism could be a woman who embodies the spirit of this new era and brings with her the insight, professionalism, and global perspective our sector requires.
I recently learned that Gloria Guevarra and Harry Theoharis are meeting very soon to discuss this, and I encourage such a meeting. Both have the qualities to stop the current Secretary General from serving a third term.
Let us lead with courage, clarity, and respect for the principles that make international cooperation possible.
Dr. Taleb Rifai
Secretary-General, UNWTO (2010–2017)
Dr. Rifai’s statement is timely, and it’s clearing the records.
Considering that the UK-based conference organizer ITIC’s founder, Ibrahim Ayoub from Mauritius, who is co-managing the campaign for Harry Theoharis, alleged that Dr. Rifai, a member of the ITIC advisory board and patron of the African Tourism Board (ATB) and the World Tourism Network (WTN), was supporting Harry Theoharis.
ATB Executive Director Cuthbert Ncube quickly followed with his widely publicized endorsement for Theoharis a while ago.
In the meantime, ITIC was hired and is organizing its first European African Investment Summit in Athens next week. According to a very happy Ayoub, this will be an annual event.
Cuthbert Ncube will be a speaker next week. He told eTN he was leaving Johannesburg tomorrow morning. According to Ncube, Harry Theoharis will host ministers or representatives from UN-Tourism Executive Council members Nigeria, Mozambique, and Namibia. ITIC still lists Dr. Taleb Rifai and the Hon. Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett, as speakers, but this was not confirmed when eTN asked both Taleb and Bartlett. Harry Theharis, as the host, will be the keynote speaker at this somewhat secret investment conference.
There is no indication of real investors participating at this time.
ITIC organized the recent UNWTO conference on resilience in Jamaica, where Harry Theoharis and Gloria Guevara addressed the audience.
The guest of honor, Zurab Pololikashvili, was a no-show in Jamaica after learning two of his competitors would speak.
