Jaipur Declaration puts BRICS tourism cooperation on the agenda

Tourism ministers and heads of delegation from nine BRICS member states adopted the Jaipur Declaration at a meeting held under India’s 2026 chairship. The declaration identifies four priority areas: artificial intelligence in tourism, sustainable and responsible travel, skills and capacity building, and seamless travel facilitation.

The agreement also calls for cooperation in destination management, multilingual visitor services, tourism data exchange, investment, heritage protection and community-centred tourism. Its practical value will depend on whether the commitments translate into easier travel, coordinated marketing, professional exchanges and stronger air connectivity between BRICS markets.

Pros

• Greater cooperation could support easier travel and stronger tourism flows between BRICS markets.

• Shared tourism data could help governments and businesses forecast demand more accurately.

• AI cooperation may improve destination marketing, visitor management and personalised travel services.

• Joint skills programmes could address hospitality workforce shortages.

• Emphasis on community-based tourism may help local businesses benefit from visitor spending.

• Coordinated promotion could create multi-country BRICS itineraries.

Cons

• A declaration is not legally binding and may not immediately change visa or border procedures.

• Different visa regimes, currencies, regulations and political priorities may slow implementation.

• Excessive focus on technology could disadvantage smaller tourism businesses with limited digital capacity.

• Tourism growth without enforceable sustainability standards could increase environmental pressure.

• Data-sharing arrangements may raise privacy, cybersecurity and governance concerns.