SERVICES: PAR SECTEUR
Services relatifs au tourisme et aux voyages
Le tourisme joue un rôle important pour presque tous les Membres de l'OMC, en particulier du fait de sa contribution à l'emploi, au PIB et aux entrées de devises. Les services relatifs au tourisme sont généralement des services à forte intensité de main-d'œuvre, bien souvent liés à d'autres segments importants de l'économie, comme les services de transport et les services culturels et créatifs, ou les services financiers et d'assurance.
Tourism and travel-related services include services provided by hotels and restaurants (including catering), travel agencies and tour operator services, tourist guide services and other related services.
A crucial aspect of trade in tourism services is the cross-border movement of consumers (mode 2). This permits a variety of workers, including those in remote areas, to become services exporters — for instance, by guiding tourists, performing in local events, or working in tourist accommodation. While digitalisation offers great potential for many aspects of tourism services, the sector continues to depend highly on the cross-border movement of both customers and employees, and remains strongly linked to transport services.
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Current commitments and exemptions
Tourism commitments have been undertaken by over 133 WTO members, more than in any other service sector. This indicates the desire of most members to expand their tourism sectors and to increase inward foreign direct investment (FDI) as part of their efforts to promote economic growth.
The level of commitments by sub-sector varies widely for tourism and travel-related services. Commitments on services provided by hotels and restaurants are the most frequent, with a significantly smaller number of WTO members making commitments on travel agencies and tour operator services. Only about half of members with commitments on tourism have included tourist guide services, and only a few members have made commitments for the “other” tourism services category.
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Treatment of the sector in negotiations
Tourism services, like other services covered by the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), were included in the services negotiations that began in 2000.
One of the earliest documents was a proposal for a GATS Annex on Tourism, originally sponsored by the Dominican Republic, El Salvador and Honduras (S/C/W/127 and S/C/W/127/Corr.1). The proposal had two main aspects: more comprehensive treatment of the tourism sector (with respect to classification issues), and the prevention of anti-competitive practices. As part of the plurilateral process, a joint request was made by a group of developing countries, asking for improved tourism commitments for all modes of supply.
- Proposals and related negotiating documents on tourism services