Tourism Concepts III: The Role and Functions of Tourism Organisations: UNWTO, IATA, ICAO, UFTAA, ASTA, PATA, WTTC and IHA; TAAI, IATO, FHRAI, ITDC, ICPB and the State Tourism Development Corporations; and the Airports Authority, the Archaeological Survey and the Ministries of Tourism, Culture, Railways and Civil Aviation
1. The intergovernmental bodies: UNWTO (UN Tourism) and ICAO
The World Tourism Organization descends from the International Congress of Official Tourist Traffic Associations formed at The Hague in 1925, which became the International Union of Official Travel Organisations (IUOTO) in 1947. IUOTO's members adopted the statutes of a new intergovernmental World Tourism Organization on 27 September 1970, a date now marked as World Tourism Day, and the organisation began work in 1975, with its headquarters in Madrid. It became a specialised agency of the United Nations in 2003, and since January 2024 it has presented itself as UN Tourism. Its full members are sovereign states, with associate members (territories) and affiliate members from the private sector, education and destinations. Its functions are to promote tourism as a driver of development, to set statistical standards (the International Recommendations for Tourism Statistics and the Tourism Satellite Account framework), to publish data and the World Tourism Barometer, to give technical assistance and training, and to promote responsible tourism through the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, adopted by its General Assembly in 1999.
The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) was created by the Convention on International Civil Aviation signed at Chicago on 7 December 1944, the Chicago Convention; it came into being on 4 April 1947 and became a UN specialised agency the same year, with its headquarters in Montreal. It is an organisation of states, not airlines. It adopts Standards and Recommended Practices (SARPs), set out in the annexes to the Convention, on everything from personnel licensing, rules of the air and aerodromes to security, the carriage of dangerous goods and safety management; it plans air navigation, audits states' safety and security oversight, and works on aviation's environmental effects. It also allots its own designators, three-letter airline codes and four-letter airport codes such as VIDP for Delhi, which air traffic control uses alongside IATA's commercial codes.
2. The international trade associations: IATA, UFTAA, ASTA, PATA, WTTC and IHA
| Body | Founded, headquarters | Members and main functions |
|---|---|---|
| IATA, International Air Transport Association | Havana, April 1945, succeeding the International Air Traffic Association of 1919; head office Montreal, executive office Geneva | Airlines. Coordinates fares through its tariff conferences, runs the Clearing House and the Billing and Settlement Plan, accredits travel agents, publishes the Dangerous Goods Regulations and the Travel Information Manual, sets industry standards (the e-ticket, city and airline codes), and audits airline safety |
| UFTAA, Universal Federation of Travel Agents' Associations | 1966; Monaco | National travel agents' associations. Represents travel agents and tour operators worldwide, sets standards of practice, trains, and settles disputes between agents and suppliers |
| ASTA | 1931, as the American Steamship and Tourist Agents' Association; later the American Society of Travel Agents, renamed the American Society of Travel Advisors in 2018; Alexandria, Virginia | Travel agencies, largely in North America, with international members. Advocacy, a code of ethics, education and consumer protection |
| PATA, Pacific Asia Travel Association | Honolulu, 1951; now Bangkok | Governments, tourism boards, airlines, hotels and agencies of the Asia-Pacific. Promotes and researches travel to and within the region, with chapters in member countries including India |
| WTTC, World Travel & Tourism Council | Formed around 1990; London | Chief executives of the largest travel and tourism companies. Lobbies governments on the value of the sector and publishes annual research on its economic impact and employment |
| IHA, International Hotel Association | Now the International Hotel & Restaurant Association (IH&RA) | National hotel associations and hotel chains. Represents the hotel and restaurant industry before intergovernmental bodies and promotes its standards |
Two distinctions settle most questions. First, members: IATA's members are airlines, UFTAA's are national associations, ASTA's are agencies and individuals, WTTC's are chief executives, and UNWTO's and ICAO's are states. Second, purpose: IATA regulates the commercial side of airline business (fares, settlement, agency accreditation, codes) while ICAO sets the technical and safety standards that states must implement. The World Association of Travel Agencies (WATA), named in Unit V, is a separate body, a Geneva-based network of independent agencies that guarantees members' services to one another.
3. Indian trade associations and public-sector bodies: TAAI, IATO, FHRAI, ITDC, ICPB and the state corporations
| Body | Founded | Role |
|---|---|---|
| TAAI, Travel Agents Association of India | 1951, Mumbai | The oldest and largest association of Indian travel agents; represents the trade before airlines, government and IATA, and runs conventions and training |
| IATO, Indian Association of Tour Operators | 1981, New Delhi | The national body of inbound tour operators, those who handle foreign tourists in India; works with the Ministry of Tourism on promotion, policy and standards |
| FHRAI, Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India | 1955, New Delhi | The apex body of the four regional hotel and restaurant associations (west, north, east and south); represents the hospitality industry on taxation, licensing and policy |
| ITDC, India Tourism Development Corporation | October 1966, under the Ministry of Tourism | The central public-sector tourism company: the Ashok Group of hotels, transport, duty-free shops, sound-and-light shows, event management and its Ashok Institute of Hospitality and Tourism Management |
| ICPB, India Convention Promotion Bureau | 1988, with the support of the Ministry of Tourism | Promotes India as a destination for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) and bids for international conventions |
| State Tourism Development Corporations | Set up by the states, for example in Kerala, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh | Run state hotels, wayside amenities, tourist transport and packages, luxury trains in partnership with the railways, and state tourism promotion |
4. The Airports Authority of India and the Archaeological Survey of India
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) was constituted under the Airports Authority of India Act 1994 and began functioning on 1 April 1995, by merging the International Airports Authority of India (1972) and the National Airports Authority (1986). It builds, upgrades, maintains and manages civil airports and civil enclaves at defence airfields, and it provides air navigation services, including air traffic management, over Indian airspace and the adjoining oceanic areas. Where major airports have been leased to private operators, the AAI remains the air navigation service provider, and at the first airports privatised, such as Delhi and Mumbai, it holds a minority equity share in the operating companies. For tourism the AAI matters because airport capacity and regional connectivity decide which destinations can be reached.
The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) was founded in 1861 with Alexander Cunningham as its first Archaeological Surveyor, and it now works under the Ministry of Culture. It protects and conserves the monuments and sites declared to be of national importance under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act 1958, excavates and explores, runs site museums, regulates construction in the prohibited and regulated areas around protected monuments, and manages most of India's cultural World Heritage properties. Because the monuments it protects are among India's most visited attractions, its ticketing, visitor facilities, lighting and interpretation are part of the tourism product.
5. The Ministries of Tourism, Culture, Railways and Civil Aviation
| Ministry | Main tourism functions | Bodies and schemes under it |
|---|---|---|
| Ministry of Tourism | Policy, planning and promotion at home and abroad; the approval and classification of hotels and the recognition of travel agents, tour operators and guides; tourism statistics; infrastructure schemes; training | India Tourism offices at home and overseas; ITDC; the National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology and the Institutes of Hotel Management; the Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management; the Incredible India campaign; Swadesh Darshan and PRASHAD |
| Ministry of Culture | Protection of monuments, museums, libraries and archives; the promotion of the performing and visual arts and of festivals | The Archaeological Survey of India; the National Museum and other national museums; the Sangeet Natak, Lalit Kala and Sahitya Akademis; the zonal cultural centres |
| Ministry of Railways | Rail access to destinations, tourist and pilgrim trains, luxury and heritage trains, catering and online ticketing | Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC, incorporated 1999); the mountain railways; tourist train services run with the states |
| Ministry of Civil Aviation | Aviation policy, airports and regional air connectivity | The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (regulator), the Airports Authority of India, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority; the regional connectivity scheme UDAN under the National Civil Aviation Policy 2016 |
Key takeaways
- UNWTO grew from the 1925 congress and IUOTO (1947), adopted its statutes on 27 September 1970 (World Tourism Day), began work in 1975 in Madrid, became a UN specialised agency in 2003 and has used the name UN Tourism since January 2024; ICAO, created by the Chicago Convention of 1944, has worked from Montreal since 1947.
- IATA (1945, Havana; Montreal and Geneva) is the airlines' Association, not an "Organization": fares, BSP, the Clearing House, agency accreditation, codes and the Dangerous Goods Regulations; ICAO, the states' Organization, sets SARPs.
- UFTAA (1966, Monaco) federates agents' associations; ASTA (1931) is now the American Society of Travel Advisors; PATA (Honolulu 1951, now Bangkok) serves the Asia-Pacific; WTTC (London) gathers chief executives; the IHA is now the IH&RA.
- India's trade and public bodies run TAAI 1951, FHRAI 1955, ITDC 1966, IATO 1981 and ICPB 1988 (MICE); the AAI began on 1 April 1995 by merging two authorities, and the ASI dates from 1861 under Cunningham.
- The Ministry of Tourism promotes, plans and approves; Culture holds the ASI and the akademis; Railways holds IRCTC and the tourist trains; Civil Aviation holds the DGCA, AAI, BCAS and UDAN, which makes coordination the core task of tourism administration.
Practice questions (10)
Attempt each one before opening the answer. Every explanation names the tempting wrong option as well as the right one, because that is where marks are lost.
The headquarters of the World Tourism Organization, which has used the name UN Tourism since January 2024, is in
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Answer: B — Madrid
The organisation has been based in Madrid since it began work in 1975. Montreal is the seat of ICAO and IATA's head office, Geneva of IATA's executive office, and Bangkok of PATA.The syllabus expands IATA as "International Air Transport Organization". The correct expansion of IATA is
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Answer: A — International Air Transport Association
IATA is the International Air Transport Association, a trade association of airlines founded in 1945. The intergovernmental "Organization" in civil aviation is ICAO, the International Civil Aviation Organization.In which year was the India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) set up? Give the year.
Numerical answer — type the value.
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Answer: 1966
ITDC was set up in October 1966 as the central public-sector undertaking for tourism; it runs the Ashok Group of hotels, duty-free shops and sound-and-light shows.The International Civil Aviation Organization was created by
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Answer: D — the Convention on International Civil Aviation signed at Chicago in 1944
The Chicago Convention of 7 December 1944 created ICAO, which came into being in April 1947. The Havana meeting of 1945 founded IATA, and the Warsaw (1929) and Montreal (1999) Conventions govern air carriers' liability to passengers.Which of the following are Indian associations of the travel and hospitality trade? Select all that apply.
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Answer: A — IATO; B — TAAI; D — FHRAI
TAAI (travel agents, 1951), IATO (inbound tour operators, 1981) and FHRAI (hotels and restaurants, 1955) are Indian bodies. WTTC is an international council of travel and tourism chief executives based in London.The Archaeological Survey of India was founded in 1861 with its first Archaeological Surveyor being
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Answer: B — Alexander Cunningham
Cunningham, who had surveyed Buddhist sites for decades, was appointed Archaeological Surveyor in 1861. John Marshall was Director-General from 1902 and led the Harappan excavations; Wheeler was Director-General in the 1940s; Prinsep deciphered the Brahmi script in the 1830s.Match the organisation with its headquarters. (a) PATA (b) UFTAA (c) WTTC (d) ICAO. Headquarters: (1) Montreal (2) London (3) Monaco (4) Bangkok
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Answer: D — a-4, b-3, c-2, d-1
PATA moved from Honolulu to Bangkok, UFTAA is based in Monaco, WTTC in London and ICAO in Montreal.The body that promotes India as a destination for meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions and bids for international conferences is the
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Answer: D — India Convention Promotion Bureau (ICPB)
ICPB, set up in 1988 with the Ministry of Tourism's support, is India's MICE promotion body. IATO represents inbound tour operators, ITDC is the public-sector tourism company and TAAI the travel agents' association.Assertion (A): The Airports Authority of India continues to provide air traffic services even at major airports leased to private operators. Reason (R): The Airports Authority of India was formed in 1995 by merging the International Airports Authority of India and the National Airports Authority.
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Answer: B — Both A and R are true, but R is not the correct explanation of A
Both statements are true, but R does not explain A. The AAI keeps air navigation services because they are a sovereign safety function over the whole of Indian airspace, not because of how the Authority was formed; the 1995 merger explains its origin, not its role at leased airports.Which of the following are functions of IATA rather than of ICAO? Select all that apply.
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Answer: A — Operating the Billing and Settlement Plan between airlines and travel agents; D — Accrediting travel agents to sell airline tickets
BSP and agency accreditation are commercial services IATA provides to its member airlines. SARPs and the audit of states' safety oversight are ICAO's, because ICAO is the body of states that implement them.