The COVID-19 pandemic caused many countries to close or restrict their borders, the US was no exception. In 2021 alone, the tourism sector had losses of two trillion dollars, according to UN estimates. Currently, people have a need to travel, which is why tourism in the country is experiencing a rebound, however, there are various global factors that are limiting the trend from continuing.

Although tourism is expected to increase by 30 percent this summer, the sector will not fully recover until 2027, so it is necessary to ensure the conditions for the sector to continue to grow and reach the estimates.

This was stated by specialists in the field during a press conference organized by Ethnic Media Services, where they pointed out that it is difficult to guarantee constant growth in tourism due to factors such as inflation, climate change, internal or external conflicts in countries, among others. However, all possibilities must be considered. 

Dr. Frederic Dimanche, director of the Ted Rogers School of Hospitality and Tourism Management, explained that people are looking for new experiences and visiting their relatives after the pandemic, a fact that currently drives tourists, but external factors will be the limiting factors.

«With inflation, the cost of travel has increased dramatically, particularly air travel and the cost of hotels. It seems like everyone wants to make up for the funds they lost during the pandemic, and all those businesses are now trying to recoup some of what they lost.", he pointed out.

Traveling has become very expensive, however, necessity allows us to cover the cost, although it must be considered that we will not always have the financial solvency to do so and this will end up limiting many who are traveling today. 

For her part, Cassandra Costello, executive vice president of the San Francisco Travel Association, mentioned that tourism is essential to the economy, which is why investments have been made in new programs to invite tourists.

He said there are also new places to discover new experiences, and work has been done to renovate parks, museums, open spaces and places that are attractive to those who want to get to know San Francisco.

"Like other cities in the United States, San Francisco is still struggling with some pandemic-related challenges, but it remains one of the safest cities, with crime down 7 percent," he said.

For Costello, the good news is that there is an increase in tourism in San Francisco, and tourists, for the most part, want to return to visit the city and its surroundings. However, work is still being done with great enthusiasm to achieve the expected increase.

James Altucher, podcaster and author of «New York is dead forever», He explained that the recovery of tourism is by no means guaranteed, since high travel costs are becoming a determining factor. 

In the case of New York, he pointed out, it is affected by crime and population decline.

«Tourism has increased from 2020 to 2021, New York had 60 million tourists last year and it will surely increase more, but tourism has decreased since 2019, and if you do the math, it will recover in 2026-2027, it is not yet known. What we do know is that tourism is affected by crime rates, crimes, taxes, inflation and others.».

Finally, Iuliana Popa, PhD student at Conrad Hilton College of Global Hospitality, stressed that employees in the tourism sector were also affected by the pandemic, as most of them lost their jobs, forcing them to permanently change their workplace.

And now that tourism is to be reactivated, he said, it is difficult to hire personnel for this sector, since fear and anger are among the emotional effects that have caused job losses.

It is understood that the hotel and tourism industry is not responsible for external factors in the world, but it can improve working conditions that generate an environment of stability and security in the workplace, he explained.

 «For companies in the hotel industry, it is impossible to control external factors such as the virus, but there are other immediate actions that they can take, for example, offering more competitive salaries, especially with inflation making everything more difficult for employees in the hotel industry.».

For experts, the increase in tourism after the pandemic is a current trend but not a permanent one, due to external factors such as the economic situation with inflation, climate change with extreme temperatures in various places, or internal and external conflicts in each country such as the war in Ukraine. 

In light of this, they agreed that it is necessary for companies and governments to seek measures to boost tourism, support it with programs or campaigns that are attractive to tourists, while taking care of the employees in this sector, since they will be the ones who will provide the necessary impetus to continue with favorable numbers for world tourism. 

You may be interested in: Climate change: key factor in migratory movements

With more than 98 percent of the ballots computed, a second electoral round in Guatemala is certain to choose who will be the next president of the Republic for the next 6 years, after no contestant has gathered 50 percent of the votes. votes plus 1.

The two candidates who managed to advance to the second round were the former first lady of the center right, Sandra Torres, with 15.78 percent of the computed votes exercised yesterday, Sunday, June 25, when the general elections were held.

The second to advance was a surprise for many, as he was not emerging as one of the favorites in terms of the Guatemalan voting intention. Thus, Bernardo Arevalo, from the leftist Movimiento Semilla party is placed with 11.80 percent of the votes computed.

According to the Preliminary Electoral Results, issued by the Supreme Electoral Tribunal of Guatemala, citizen participation in this Sunday's elections was 59.99 percent, who cast 5 million 499 thousand 963 valid votes.

The summary shows that, of the votes cast, 4 million 158 thousand 536 ‒75.61 percent‒ were valid, while 385 thousand 014 ‒7.0 percent‒ were blank, and 956 thousand 413 ‒17.38‒ were invalid.

In addition, they have specified that the count resulted in 63,408 invalid votes and 4,138 challenges.

It should be noted that the electoral authorities contemplate an abstentionism of 40 percent, where three million 667 thousand 394 of those registered to cast their votes did not.

However, civil and human rights organizations reported the problems that many had in accessing or being able to cast their vote peacefully.

The final fight begins

 "We are going to win, against whoever," warned Sandra Torres Casanova, early Monday morning. The former first lady and who today heads the list for the second round of elections, scheduled for August 20, already knows the way; it is enough to remember that four years ago, in the 2019 elections, she succumbed in the second round to the current president, Alejandro Giammattei.

Previously, in 2015, Torres Casanova lost in the second round against comedian Jimmy Morales, president between 2016 and 2020. 

Given this, Sandra Torres hopes that the third time will be the charm and manage to inhabit the famous Casa Crema.

The task will not be easy. Although he did not position himself as the second in line, yesterday's elections clearly showed that the leftist Bernardo Arévalo de León, known as "Uncle Bernie" and leader of the Semilla Movement, has gained great strength in the Central American country, using urban areas as his base of strength.

Some call him the anti-corruption deputy, and he has focused his campaign on the fight for justice and social awareness.

Arévalo de León is also no stranger to the country's highest office, as he is the son of Juan José Arévalo Bermejo, considered one of the best presidents in the history ‒1945-1951‒ of the Central American country.

The candidate is a deputy and head of the Semilla faction in Congress, where with only five parliamentarians they have sought to fight and oppose the ruling party.

You may be interested in: Patronage and Vote Hauling in General Elections in Guatemala

"The phenomenon of clientelism and vote buying has spread throughout the country," said members of the Electoral Observatory, as part of a first report on the first round of the general elections in Guatemala, which will take place on June 25. 

According to Mirador Electoral, in collaboration with the Prensa Comunitaria media network, elections are being held with no controls and no sanctions from electoral authorities, which creates an "environment of impunity, which is exploited by political parties." 

As of 1:00 p.m. on Election Day, Mirador Electoral reported in a press conference that there were records of incidents in at least 12 municipalities located in 8 departments of Guatemala, in addition to "dozens of complaints," many of them filed with the public prosecutor's office and the Electoral Crimes Prosecutor's Office, an authority that had reported 117 complaints up to that point. 

The main complaints, said Mirador Lectoral, are related to voter transport, a practice that is carried out most frequently in municipalities, where some candidates use "large amounts of money" to mobilize people from other localities. 

The most serious case recorded by Mirador Electoral occurred in the municipality of San José del Golfo, in the department of Guatemala, where voting has not been carried out until 10:00 a.m. due to the dissatisfaction of the inhabitants of this town with the massive transport of people from other municipalities, presumably paid for this purpose.

Prensa Comunitaria and RUDA, in collaboration with Península 360 Press and Global Exchange, will continue to provide national and international coverage from Guatemala, as part of an effort by more than 15 community media outlets from Mexico, Bolivia, Colombia, Argentina, Ecuador and Honduras.

The team has also been deployed to 13 departments and 4 municipalities. An effort of more than 100 people who on this election day are carrying the data that comes out of this electoral day in its first round.

This note was produced in collaboration with the Organization Global Exchange and Community Press. 

You may be interested in: They repress and suspend elections in San José del Golfo

By Community Press in collaboration with Peninsula 360 Press and Global Exchange.

The citizens of that municipality have not been able to exercise their vote, after 130 members of the Vote Receiving Board resigned from their posts.

Voting in the municipality of San José del Golfo was suspended after a series of incidents occurred on Saturday night. The Departmental Electoral Board (JED) of Guatemala said that a group of people forced them to get off the buses in which they were traveling to a training session.

After they got off the buses, the members in charge of delivering and receiving the ballots were doused with gasoline and threatened with being set on fire.

The events have already been reported to the National Civil Police (PNC). However, due to the lack of Voting Reception Boards (JRV), the four voting centers installed in that municipality did not open their doors so that citizens could elect their authorities.

The Departmental Electoral Board of Guatemala and the Municipal Electoral Board (JEM) of San José del Golfo indicated that they are “working with all legal and security mechanisms at their disposal to continue with a legitimate, orderly and efficient process.”

They also reported that, with the support of the PNC, they coordinated the transfer of electoral supplies to the Nito Palencia Basic Education Institute, so that it can operate as a voting center in that town.

They try to dialogue

However, upon arriving at the site, a group of residents blocked the entrance to the premises. According to the electoral authorities, they are holding talks with the protesters so that the registered voters of the municipality can cast their vote "safely."

In fact, outside the aforementioned educational center, riot police fired tear gas bombs at the protesters. Members of the Guatemalan Army even showed up at the scene.

Police have already arrested at least one person for the incidents. Separately, residents of San José del Golfo reported that people who are not from the municipality arrived in the town and said they were "carried away."

Read the note in its original version by giving Click here.

You may be interested in: General elections begin in Guatemala