Investments in biometrics, as well as other technologies and improvements aimed at streamlining the travel experience, could be a big future job creator, according to a new study released by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) at the Annual General Meeting of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in Sydney. The report demonstrates that between 7 and 19 million future jobs in the G20 countries can be created by the public and private sector working together on what the report describes as a “seamless passenger experience.”
IATA reported 4.1 billion passengers were flown in 2017, a new record, with a promising forecast to reach 7.8 billion passengers by 2036 worldwide. At the same time, the UNWTO anticipates a rise in international visitor arrivals from 1.3 billion in 2017 to 1.8 billion by 2030.
Travel and Tourism’s GDP grew 50 percent more than the world economy in 2017 at 4.6 percent, and the projections indicate that Travel & Tourism will continue to outpace global economy growth in the future. The potential to double the number of air passengers and increase the number of travelers around the world offers a unique opportunity to create millions of jobs, the WTTC said.
WTTC estimates that between 12 percent and 31 percent of all the future new jobs in travel and tourism across the G20 countries could be created by transitioning to a Seamless Passenger Journey and the use of technology and biometrics solutions, in addition to infrastructure investment. This includes making existing terminal facilities and processes more efficient, more secure and seamless which will result in between 7 million and 19 million jobs being created.
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