U.S., Sept. 24 -- Governments have been called on to agree a coordinated global and regional response to the COVID-19 pandemic to protect the future of the travel sector and tourism recovery.

Speaking in the latest in a series of Hon. Edmund Bartlett Lectures, leading industry academic and industry figures warned against countries becoming isolationist and protectionist.

The online event earlier this month discussed 'Geopolitics and the Coronavirus' and was broadcast globally across 28 media platforms reaching a total audience of 80,000 viewers.

Minister Bartlett, the Jamaican Tourism Minister, said countries must identify long-term sustainable strategies and resist taking one-dimensional approaches to tackling the pandemic.

"We must ...