Tourism is “diplomacy without a negotiating table”, Ambassador St Ange tells Oxford Summit |10 September 2026

Tourism is “diplomacy without a negotiating table”, Ambassador St Ange tells Oxford Summit

Seychelles’ ambassador Alain St Ange challenged delegates at the Oxford Global Diplomat Summit & Dialogue to rethink tourism as more than arrival numbers, describing it as one of humanity’s largest and most underrated forms of exchange.

Delivering the keynote address at the Lord Mayor’s Cabinet Office, in the presence of the Lord Mayor of Oxford, Ambassador St Ange spoke on the theme ‘Tourism as a Bridge Between Nations’. He argued that tourism is not merely an economic sector but a daily act of human connection that can challenge prejudice, strengthen peace, and reshape how nations perceive one another.

“At its best, tourism allows us to meet each other as people. And at a time when the world is more connected than ever, but also deeply divided, that matters,” he said.

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