The UNWTO Acceleration Programme is the first training platform specifically designed for the tourism officials of the World Tourism Organization's Member States in order to develop innovation and digital transformation skills and provide practical tools for project implementation in diverse destinations.

Its objectives are:
*To encourage government officials to foster innovation and digital transformation within their regions
*To strengthen knowledge in innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem development
*To introduce case studies and best practices which may lead governments to define concrete actions
*To provide tools to drive digital transformation projects

Its first edition gathered more than 50 participants from 20 nationalities, covering the 5 UNWTO regions. The attendees had an intensive agenda with keynote speeches, masterclasses and workshops about digital transformation, entrepreneurship, how to grow startups to scaleups, GovTech initiatives, public-private innovation, smart destinations and venture capital.

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals led the discussions and allowed the participants to observe the importance of merging innovation and sustainability.