BRICS Tourism Ministers meet concludes, Adopt 'Jaipur Declaration'

BRICS Tourism Ministers on Friday adopted the Jaipur Declaration and Ministers’ Communique by consensus, outlining a framework for cooperation in areas including artificial intelligence, sustainable tourism, skills development and seamless travel facilitation. The BRICS Tourism Ministers’ Meeting was chaired by Union Minister for Culture and Tourism Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and marked the culmination of the BRICS Tourism Track under India’s Chairship in 2026. The Tourism Track was taken forward under the theme, “Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.” The meeting was attended by representatives of nine BRICS member states. Ministerial participants included Gustavo Costa Feliciano, Minister of Tourism of Brazil; Reza Salehi Amiri, Iran’s Minister of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts; Patricia De Lille, South Africa’s Minister of Tourism; and Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy and Tourism. Heads of delegations from China, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Russia also attended the meeting.
The Jaipur Declaration reflects the work undertaken by the BRICS Tourism Working Group during India’s Chairship and focuses on four key priorities: Artificial Intelligence and Tourism; Sustainability and Responsible Tourism; Tourism Skilling and Capacity Building; and Tourism Exchanges and Seamless Travel Facilitation. The declaration also emphasises sustainable and community-centred tourism, the protection of natural and cultural heritage, tourism investment and infrastructure, and the development and promotion of diverse tourism products. Other areas of cooperation include continuous skilling and upskilling, industry-academia partnerships, exchange of tourism data and statistics, sharing of best practices and strengthening people-to-people ties among BRICS member states.