The historical traditions of cultural and trade relations have left the peoples of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation member states not only a rich legacy of material achievements, but also strong humanistic traditions that promote peace, good-neighbourliness, and mutually beneficial cooperation. These traditions unite different countries and peoples, foster the development of international tourism, and contribute to the progress of humanity.
The expansion of economic and humanitarian cooperation has created a need for joint efforts to establish mechanisms of interaction within the Organisation aimed at developing multilateral cooperation in the field of tourism.
On 25 March 2015, the first meeting of the heads of SCO national tourism administrations was held in Moscow, Russia.
The main mechanisms for tourism cooperation among SCO member states are the Expert Working Group (EWG) and the Meeting of Heads of Tourism Administrations.
The EWG was established in 2016. Since that, 28 meetings have been held, the most recent of which took place on 6 March 2026, online under the chairmanship of the Kyrgyz Republic in preparation for the Meeting of Heads of Tourism Administrations.
Such meetings have also been held since 2016. Over this period, nine meetings have taken place. The most recent meeting was held on 7 July 2025, in Qingdao under the chairmanship of the People’s Republic of China. Following the meeting, the relevant protocol was signed.
By the decision of the SCO Heads of State Council on 17 September 2021, the Regulation on the Tourism and Cultural Capital of the SCO was approved. The first city to receive this status was Varanasi (2022–2023), after which the title was transferred to Almaty (2023–2024).
For the period 2024–2025, at the proposal of the Chinese side, Qingdao was designated as the Tourism and Cultural Capital of the SCO. At the HTA meeting on 7 July 2025, the application submitted by the Kyrgyz side to grant this status to the city of Cholpon-Ata for 2025–2026 was also supported.