Celebrating Achievements and Progress in the Division – April 2025

KAMORALE from the SPTO Division of Sustainable Tourism!

As we slowly progress into the mid-year, we are excited to showcase key updates from the Pacific on sustainable tourism development. In this April issue, we take you to the North Pacific, closing in on the remote and beautiful Federated States of Micronesia as our Country of Focus. Rich in culture, history, and stories, FSM highlights two key events that celebrate the people and culture of the four states. The 4^th Micronesia Expo is a national event that will be bringing together all FSM states for a celebration of their shared heritage through traditional dances, cuisine showcases, cultural and historical presentations, marine activities and more. At the global level, all four states of FSM are participating in the 2025 World Expo in Japan from April to October 2025, sharing their culture, handicrafts, and stories.

April also saw a significant increase in activities and progress within the region relating to sustainable and responsible tourism development. These updates include initiatives from the Cook Islands, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, the Marshall Islands, and Samoa. We are also happy to announce the recently launched Standards and Certification Programme for Phasing out Single-use Plastics in the Pacific Tourism Industry at the May SPTO Board of Directors Meeting, as our ‘Must-have Tool for Success’. Information on upcoming events and opportunities is also included in the Newsbeat.

The Division is pleased to present the following updates concerning our activities for the month of April.:

• Conducted the Regional Workshop for the Sustainable Tourism Enhancement Project, attended by 10 countries
• Conducted a regional workshop with 9 National Tourism Organisations on the mid-term progress of the 2030 Pacific Sustainable Tourism Policy Framework
• Completion and launch of the Standards and Certification Programme for Phasing out Single-use Plastics in the Pacific Tourism Industry.
• Planning for the in-country socialisation and implementation of the above programme
• Conducted our quarter 2 planning meeting for the division’s workplan, including key activities/projects for the remaining period of 2025.
• Continued planning preparations for the third Pacific Sustainable Tourism Leadership Summit.
• Preparations for the Regional Workshop on Gastronomy Tourism from 30 June to 2 July
• Preparations for the launch of the online cultural tourism training.
• Recruitment of the technical consultant for the development of the Pacific Sustainable Tourism Portal.
• Planning meetings with countries for the Community Tourism Project

We invite you to subscribe to our monthly newsletter to receive updates, invitations, and announcements from the SPTO Division of Sustainable Tourism. Please stay tuned for our upcoming Newsbeat for May, which will feature Tonga as our country of focus.

For further inquiries, please contact us at sustainable@spto.org