As regional market players continue to eye opportunities in sustainable tourism and hospitality as part of their economic diversification efforts, investors are taking notice, Accor chairman and CEO, Sébastien Bazin, said at the Arabian and African Hospitality Investment Conference (AHIC).
The hospitality giant’s CEO revealed that Accor will be joining the Sustainable Hospitality Alliance to further strengthen its sustainability and ESG efforts.
The alliance, whose members make up 25 percent of the global hotel industry by rooms and includes 14 world-leading hotel companies, aims to use the industry’s collective power to address and tackle key challenges affecting the sector and its people.
An enhanced focus on sustainability and ESG was named as one of the top three priorities for hotel investors over the near-term, according to JLL’s annual ‘Global Hotel Investor Sentiment’ survey.
“We believe working together as an industry on sustainability makes us stronger and is the most effective way in finding new ways to contributing positively to the environment and the local communities globally,” said Bazin.
Commenting on the key to the sector’s recovery, Accor’s CEO said: “Vaccination rollout is the solution for all of us to get back on our feet.”
Following a successful coronavirus vaccination-drive, with 81.55 percent of the population now doubly vaccinated, hotel occupancies in the UAE reached 62 percent in the first six months of 2021, according to state news agency WAM.
62,694 doses of #COVID19 vaccine were given in the last 24 hours, to reach a total of 19,549,263 doses, with a distribution rate of 197.66 doses per 100 people. A percentages of 92.34% have received 1 dose and 81.55% is fully vaccinated of the population.#TogetherWeRecover
— NCEMA UAE (@NCEMAUAE) September 21, 2021
Sharing his outlook on the recovery of business travel, Bazin said: “I am very optimistic about domestic, intra-regional business travelers making a return – they will be back in pre-pandemic rates. However, the international business travelers, we stand to lose at least 25 percent of them.”
Accor also announced yesterday that it is growing its portfolio in Saudi Arabia, penning a deal with Taiba Investments, one of the largest real estate companies in the kingdom, to open the first Novotel hotel in Madinah.
Accor, with more than 5,200 properties and 10,000 food and beverage venues throughout 110 countries, currently operate 34 properties (13,517 keys) in Saudi Arabia with another 25 properties (7,948 keys) in the pipeline.
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