Bangkok (Thailand) – April 28, 2017 (travelindex.com) – His Excellency General Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of Thailand, today opened the 2017 World Tourism Summit of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) and delivered an opening address to the more than 800 delegates attending the event on April 26 and 27. Following this, His Excellency General Tanasak Patimapragorn, Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand, will preside over the welcome gala dinner, specially designed for the delegates to introduce them to unique Thai experiences.

The presence of both the Thai Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister at this global showcase event for the private sector underlines Thailand's commitment to developing the tourism industry, the Kingdom's largest export.

General Prayut Chan-o-cha stated that Thailand's tourism revenues increased by 21 percent to 2.26 trillion baht (US$66.47 billion) in 2015, and despite unfavorable global economic conditions, the Thai tourism sector saw growth of 11 percent to 2.52 trillion baht (US$74.1 billion) in 2016.

“I am proud that Thailand has been chosen to host one of the world’s most important international tourism conferences. This underlines Thailand’s readiness to host global conferences and its potential to become a leading travel and tourism center in Asia and the world,” General Prayut added.

The WTTC Global Summit, hosted by the Thai Ministry of Tourism and Sports and the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), was held in Southeast Asia for the first time this year. In addition to over 800 delegates from 58 countries, ministers from the tourism and related fields of 13 nations, as well as Dr. Taleb Rifai, Secretary-General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), participated in the event.

This year's summit was held under the motto "Changing Our World." Speakers included former British Prime Minister David Cameron. Other speakers were Dr. Taleb Rifai, Secretary-General of the UNWTO; Tony Fernandes, CEO of AirAsia; David Scowsill, President and CEO of the WTTC; Gary Chapman, President of Group Services & DNATA at Emirates Group; Rob Rosenstein, CEO of Agoda; Rob Torres, Managing Director of Google Travel; Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul, Minister of Tourism and Sports of Thailand; and Chadatip Chutrakul, CEO of the Siam Piwat Group.

To mark the premiere of the summit in Southeast Asia, the TAT (Tourism Authority of Thailand) did everything possible to make the event a success and to reinforce Thailand's positive image as a top travel destination. This included showcasing some unique local Thai experiences at the welcome gala dinner on April 26, as well as on the two specially organized follow-up tours, the Rustic Thailand and the Bangkok Medley Tours, on April 27 and 28, 2017.

The WTTC reported that Thailand is among the top 10 countries with the greatest long-term tourism growth worldwide.

International Public Relations Department, Tourism Authority of Thailand, 1600 New Petchaburi Road, Makkasan, Ratchathevi, Bangkok 10400, Thailand, Tel.: +66 (0) 2250 5500 ext. 4545-48, Fax: +66 (0) 2250 0246