The travels that governments and institutions make as part of their international relations have a dimension and dynamism with a high positive economic and social impact.
Clear examples of how these trips improve the positioning of destinations -and have a positive effect on the other sectors of the destination and the region- can be found in Davos (Switzerland), which went from being a tourist destination focused mainly on winter sports, to being internationally known and placed on the map as the headquarters of the World Economic Forum (World Economic Forum), also known as the 'Davos Forum'. But we should not understand this international positioning only from a "destination awareness" point of view, since other cities with positioning -and already placed on the map for being great capitals- as can happen with Madrid (Spain) and Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), have seen their international, economic, social and touristic positioning increased by the positive effect of the celebration of COP25, in the case of Madrid, or for being the headquarters of the African Union, in the case of Addis Ababa.
Destinations such as Detroit (USA), or the aforementioned capital of Ethiopia Addis Ababa, are taking advantage of this type of events to generate a new market perspective, since the reception, execution and development of this type of trips, and the events associated with them, as well as the implementation of policies that promote their realization, generate a high tourist, economic and social interest, among other aspects.
The aforementioned city of Detroit, in seven years, has experienced historic growth, going from declaring bankruptcy in 2013 to positioning itself as one of the cities with the greatest projection in the United States during 2019, thanks to the involvement of its authorities who devised a management system that managed to make the city resurface in the fastest and most effective way possible. This has led to an increase in travel, including governmental and institutional travels, thus increasing the hosting of events, summits, international forums, etc.
In the case of Addis Ababa, its designation as the headquarters of the African Union has allowed the destination to be promoted through appropriate strategic planning, making its way in a developing area and boosting the creation of logistics, service and communication infrastructures.
The role played by destinations as managers of the space in which a summit or international forum takes place, enhances the image that they project to the world. The impact of this travel activity, which has a wide dimension and its own dynamism, provides destinations with a new market perspective, generating a high level of touristic, economic and social interest, which places cities on the map. Thus, there are many reasons why cities that host governmental and institutional travel, framed within the new Governmental and Institutional Travel and Tourism (GITT) sector, are a force for growth for the destinations themselves, enabling them to develop locally and strengthen their presence on the international scene.
