Greetings everyone
Today, across the world, every member state of UN Tourism celebrates an industry that connects people, carries culture across borders and puts food on millions of tables.

This year’s theme, “Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to Redesign Tourism,” speaks to a change already reshaping how the world discovers, books and experiences travel. Here in Sierra Leone, we answer that call with pride.
There was a time when the world only heard of Sierra Leone in moments of hardship. That time is behind us. Today we speak for ourselves: we are a nation that endured, rebuilt and rose, and our welcome is simply who we are.

Dear friends, I am pleased to report that arrivals have increased by over 20%, tourism receipts are growing, and new investment is flowing into accommodation and infrastructure. Our creatives are stepping forward with fresh confidence, and more communities are feeling the benefits of a sector that brings resources, opportunity and dignity.
And the best is still ahead. In November, the One Nation Reggae Festival will welcome the diaspora home, and in December, Lungi will host the Third UN Tourism Regional Forum on Gastronomy Tourism for Africa.

This year, World Tourism Day lives in our communities, our streets and our classrooms. On Friday, we soft-launched WAKABOT, our AI trip planner tool, making it simpler for visitors to find us and be welcomed seamlessly.
Yesterday at Bureh Beach, we asked the community what tourism has delivered for them and how their model can reach every corner of Sierra Leone. Today, we walk from Aberdeen Road to Gigibonta, and every step counts towards tourism that is sustainable, participatory and smarter. And tomorrow, our universities and schools will debate this very theme, because they are the ones who will build this industry.
Our tourism industry welcomes digital tools and artificial intelligence. They will help a visitor in Berlin find a guesthouse in Kabala, and a craftswoman in Makeni sell to the world. But no algorithm will ever replace the warmth of a Sierra Leonean greeting or the taste of cassava leaves cooked by a grandmother’s hand. Technology must amplify our authentic voice, not replace it, and every guest’s data must be protected with the same care we welcome them with.

So today, I call on each of you. To our private sector: go digital now, because the visitor of tomorrow books from a phone. To our young people: become the guides, chefs, creators and designers of a new Sierra Leone. To our communities: protect our beaches, forests and heritage. To our partners and investors: work with us on connectivity and skills. To our diaspora: come home and invest. And to every Sierra Leonean: be an ambassador, because every smile tells the world that Salone is ready.
Tourism is how a nation introduces itself to the world. With the tools of this digital age and the unmatched warmth of our people, we must write the next chapter together.

Happy World Tourism Day.