“U The event, running until Thursday, gathers over a thousand professionals in Macau to discuss the tourism sector. “We crumble as social networks replace books, as digital democracy erodes tolerance, and as we enslave ourselves in economic stagnation instead of working towards growth, the only known way to better redistribute wealth, support the weak and protect future generations,” said Pedro Costa Ferreira. The leader noted that the tourism sector has shown resilience in this scenario. “Tourism and the tourism distribution, despite attacks from reigning mediocrity, certainly stand as a zone of resistance. It has allowed growth where others stagnate, given a chance to territorial cohesion where centralization prevails, provided immigrants with training and dignified conditions, when others defend them on the streets to house them in layers, as if they were human scum,” he explained. These attitudes explain why the sector in Portugal is considered highly competitive, especially during crises like COVID-19, showing remarkable resilience. “It’s not by chance that Portuguese tourism is more competitive than the national economy. We have worked harder, innovated more, and competed with the best worldwide. We have built a cooperative framework comprising companies, associations, the CTP [Confederation of Portuguese Tourism], Turismo de Portugal, the tourism regions, and the government. We have maintained harmony from diversity,” emphasized Pedro Costa Ferreira. Hence, he justified that “Looking to the Future” — this edition’s congress theme — “is not just” a motto. “It represents each of our companies’ attitude, mirrors the ambition of the entire sector, characterizes the spirit of innovation inherent to all of us,” stated the leader. Pedro Costa Ferreira highlighted the numbers for the tourism distribution sector, updated for 2024, as “the best ever”. “The direct, indirect, and induced effects of tourism distribution represented 7.7 billion euros in 2024, equivalent to 3% of the national GDP [Gross Domestic Product]. Considering that in 2022, the same economic aggregate represented 5.8 billion euros, and in 2019, 4.2 billion, we realize the true meaning of the fantastic growth of our sector’s economic influence,” he pointed out. More significantly still, he considered, is “emphasizing that 7.7 billion [euros] correspond to about 3% of the national GDP, while 5.8 billion represented approximately 2.2% in 2022.” “We are looking at a sector clearly growing and modernizing above the national standard, amplifying its influence in the Portuguese economy. To better contextualize the numbers I just mentioned, 7.7 billion [euros] represent more than seven times Portugal’s wine exports or approximately 23 times the Added Value of Autoeuropa,” he underscored. In 2024, tourism distribution achieved a global impact of approximately 2.9% of global employment, 3.3% of total national wages, and 2.6% of total tax revenue collected in Portugal, according to the same source.
