The World Travel Agents Associations Alliance (WTAAA) has appointed Otto de Vries as its new Executive Director.
De Vries is currently CEO of Asata and a founding member of WTAAA, and is well known as a tireless advocate for South Africa’s retail travel industry.
In his new role at WTAAA, De Vries will steer the WTAAA while balancing consumer rights and travel agents’ interests globally.
“Our primary focus will be championing transparency for consumers in terms of choice and options, regardless of the travel distribution channel, and to foster greater collaboration between agencies and related travel partners across the travel ecosystem through open communication and engagements that bring both sides together,” said De Vries.
Under his leadership, WTAAA will re-establish its Passenger Agency Programme Task Force in collaboration with Iata and its member airlines. The task force will deliver solutions to the airline and travel trade to support how they manage risk while ensuring they provide value and confidence to their travelling clients.
WTAAA will also address the issues that travel agents are currently experiencing with NDC.
“We want to collaborate with Iata to achieve full NDC adoption in a way that works for everyone and does not limit access to content and pricing to the detriment of the travelling public,” De Vries explained.
Strengthening connections
In a press release he said he was looking forward to taking on the global leadership role at such a crucial time for the travel community, as the WTAAA assessed its ties with other industry bodies, including the UNWTO and World Travel & Tourism Council.
“My role is to ensure that WTAAA member organisations’ voices are heard in critical discussions on matters that impact the travel and tourism industry and to collaborate on the sustainable growth of our sector,” said De Vries.
