UAE strengthens diverse tourism partnerships at BRICS meeting

The UAE participated in the BRICS Tourism Ministers ’Meeting under India’s Chairship which held in Jaipur on Friday under the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability” and adopted the Jaipur Declaration (Ministers’ Communique).

The declaration followed preparatory discussions in Jaipur on 19 and 20 August 2026 under the BRICS Tourism Working Group.

The Jaipur Declaration reflects the work undertaken through the BRICS Tourism Working Group during India’s Chairship around four thematic priorities - Artificial Intelligence and Tourism; Sustainability and Responsible Tourism; Tourism Skilling and Capacity Building; and Tourism Exchanges and Seamless Travel Facilitation.

The UAE, whose delegation to the meeting was chaired by Abdulla bin Touq Al Marri, Minister of Economy and Tourism, welcomed the outcomes of the BRICS Tourism Ministers’ meeting and its full support for the Indian presidency and the priorities of the tourism cooperation track.

Al Marri noted that tourism extends beyond the movement of people between destinations; rather, it serves as a key driver of investment, economic growth, and job creation, while fostering stronger ties between peoples and communities.

He emphasised the UAE’s support for the initiative to establish the “BRICS Tourism Solutions Exchange Platform,” viewing it as a practical mechanism for sharing expertise, solutions, success stories, and training opportunities among member states-thereby leveraging diverse experiences and fostering innovation within the tourism sector.

The Ministers’ Communique adopted by consensus by BRICS Tourism Ministers recognises the

transformative potential of responsible, safe and human-centred Artificial Intelligence and digital

technologies in tourism and supports cooperation in tourism planning, destination management,

visitor services, multilingual communication and travel facilitation.

It further places emphasis on sustainable and community-centred tourism, protection of natural and cultural heritage, tourism investment and infrastructure, development and promotion of diverse tourism products, continuous skilling and upskilling, industry-academia partnerships, exchange of tourism data and statistics, sharing of best practices and stronger people-to-people connectivity among BRICS Member States.

On the sideline of the meeting Al Marri held separate meetings with India’s Union Minister for Culture and Tourism Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, and Brazil’s Minister of Tourism Gustavo Costa Feliciando, dueing which they explored prospects for expanding tourism cooperation between the UAE and both India and Brazil.

They also discussed ways of strengthening diverse tourism partnerships to support the growth of tourism flows and develop new opportunities for collaboration in the coming period; in addition to ways to develop tourism products and experiences, organise joint tourism events and initiatives, and exchange expertise and knowledge regarding the management and development of tourism destinations.

Earlier, BRICS Tourism Ministers adopted the Jaipur Declaration, by consensus in Jaipur, Rajasthan, on Friday.

The ministerial meeting was held under India’s 2026 Chairship of BRICS and was chaired by Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister for Culture and Tourism.

The BRICS Tourism Track in 2026 was guided by the theme “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability”.

The Jaipur Declaration set out four priority areas for cooperation among BRICS members. These priorities were AI and Tourism, Sustainability and Responsible Tourism, Tourism Skilling and Capacity Building, and Tourism Exchanges and Seamless Travel Facilitation.

The declaration referred to safe, responsible and human-centred AI for destination management, travel facilitation, visitor services and multilingual communication. AI in tourism is used for digital booking systems, customer support, route planning and data-based visitor management. The declaration followed preparatory discussions in Jaipur on 19 and 20 August 2026 under the BRICS Tourism Working Group.

Earlier this month, Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Foreign Trade, participated in the 2026 BRICS Trade Ministers Meeting (TMM), held at Maharani Mahal, Hotel Sawai Man Mahal, in Jaipur, India.

Hosted by India under its BRICS Chairmanship, the meeting brought together trade ministers and senior officials from across the BRICS community to discuss safeguarding the multilateral trading system, fostering inclusive trade, empowering MSMEs, and reshaping global value chains amid accelerating digital transformation.

Al Zeyoudi was joined by Abdulla Al Nuaimi, UAE Ambassador to India.

While in Jaipur, Al Zeyoudi held a series of bilateral discussions with key counterparts, including Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry of India; Li Chenggang, China International Trade Representative and Vice Minister of Commerce; Dr Mohamed Farid Saleh, Minister of Investment and Foreign Trade of Egypt; Dr Budi Santoso, Minister of Trade of the Republic of Indonesia; Parks Franklyn Mpho Tau, Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition of South Africa; and Ilichev Vladimir Evgenievich, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of Russia.

WAM