Gloria Guevara Manzo, a recognized global tourism leader, former Minister of Tourism of Mexico, and former CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), is gaining strong momentum in her candidacy for Secretary-General of UN Tourism. Backed by governments, business leaders, and academics from every continent, she is emerging as the frontrunner ahead of the elections to be held on May 29–30 in Segovia, Spain.

“I am convinced that we are going to win this process,” she declared confidently. “For the first time, Mexico could have a woman leading the UN Tourism Secretariat. This is a historic and very important moment for our country and for the world.”

Over the past few months, Guevara has carried out an intense international agenda, presenting her vision to more than 50 tourism ministers, including those of Argentina, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Jamaica, and Costa Rica. She also highlighted that her candidacy has confirmed votes from all continents, as well as support from more than 200 private sector leaders and over 20 universities and academic institutions. “It’s very encouraging to have such broad support,” she emphasized.

A necessary change and Pololikashvili’s withdrawal

The election comes in a context marked by the withdrawal of current Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili, who intended to run for a third term—an effort widely questioned by governments and industry representatives. “I’ve heard many voices from Europe, the Americas, Asia, and other regions express strong opposition to the idea of a third term. No United Nations agency allows it; all follow a two-term system,” Guevara explained.

Reports indicate that the Georgian government decided to withdraw Pololikashvili’s candidacy after receiving clear signals from the diplomatic community. “It was crucial not to create a precedent that could harm multilateralism. That’s why the candidacy was withdrawn,” she noted.

“This sector needs someone with experience and the ability to unite”

Guevara stressed that global tourism is at a crossroads and needs leadership with vision, integrity, and deep knowledge. “I am convinced the sector needs someone with proven experience, a solid track record, and the ability to lead and unify the industry to take it into a new era and unlock its full potential,” she stated.

With more than 35 years of experience in both public and private sectors, her career highlights include integrating tourism into G20 declarations, raising Mexico’s global profile as a destination, and creating global recovery protocols for tourism during the pandemic through the WTTC. More recently, she advised the government of Saudi Arabia on using tourism as a driver for employment and economic development.

A bottom-up roadmap

Her action plan, she explained, will be based on the needs of member states, with measurable goals and a structure designed for efficient execution. She proposes a strategy based on four pillars:

• Resilience: Preparing for, managing, and recovering better from crises.
• Empowerment: Creating real opportunities for women, youth, and communities.
• Sustainability: Protecting the environment through concrete actions.
• Innovation: Leveraging tools like artificial intelligence and biometrics to enhance the tourism experience.

If elected, Gloria Guevara Manzo will implement a roadmap built in collaboration with member states, based on a bottom-up approach to address the specific priorities of each region. Her action plan will be supported by four strategic pillars: crisis resilience, empowerment of women, youth, and communities, environmental sustainability through concrete actions, and technological innovation applied to tourism. She will also establish clear and measurable goals with quarterly evaluations, and design an operational structure within UN Tourism to efficiently implement each objective. Additionally, she aims to channel billions of dollars in available international financing toward sustainable tourism projects, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises in the sector.