The Diplomat
UN Tourism has announced the UN Tourism National Open Innovation Challenge, in partnership with France. This groundbreaking collaboration marks a significant milestone as it is the first time UN Tourism and the Government of France have joined forces to empower innovation and entrepreneurship in the sector.
France, the most visited country in the world with 100 million international tourist arrivals in 2023, is also a vibrant hub for innovation and entrepreneurship. With nearly 60,000 startups and over 30 unicorns, it stands as a beacon of innovation.
“As the world’s leading tourist destination and a land of innovation with a dynamic ecosystem of start-ups, France is now giving itself the resources it needs to nurture the future champions of travel tech. This is good news for the tourism economy, but it’s also good news for the planet. It’s in our start-ups that the solutions for building a more sustainable, more responsible tourism and for decarbonising the entire sector are being born. I am delighted that they can now benefit from the recognition and support of UN Tourism, which will enable them to become more international and share their best practices”, says Marina Ferrari, Delegated Minister for Tourism Economy of France.
UN Tourism Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili says: “As the world’s top tourism destination, France is at the forefront of innovation. Our new competition will help find and recognize the next wave of tourism innovators and give them the support they need to truly transform our sector.”
“We commend the impressive ‘Welcome to France’ and ‘French Tech’ initiatives. These initiatives nurture and guide successful startups by leveraging the strengths of their communities. They set an exemplary standard for the rest of the world, encompassing almost 25,000 startups and representing over 1.1 million direct and indirect jobs”, says Natalia Bayona, UN Tourism Executive Director.
The Challenge is open to pairs of French startups (headquartered in France) and large companies (French or foreign) in the tourism sector.
- The co-developed solution must address a use case in travel tech or tourism innovation.
- Startups must have a minimum viable product (MVP), a prototype, or a solution ready for scaling.
- Companies must be able to provide resources, mentorship, and support for implementation and expansion.
Applications are now open and will close at the end of March 2025.
