Youth Lead Quintana Roo’s Tourism Job Boom

Cancún, Quintana Roo — The tourism sector generates 8.6 percent of the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and is the leading employer of young people in Quintana Roo, according to a federal official.

Mariana del Carmen Díaz y Maxil, General Director of Professionalization and Tourist Competitiveness of the Ministry of Tourism of the Government of Mexico (Sectur), stated during a visit to Quintana Roo, "Today, tourism generates 8.6 percent of the national GDP. We are the sector of good news, the number one employer of young people, the second of women, and by working together with the academic guild and scientists, we will achieve shared prosperity."

In Quintana Roo, tourism is the primary industry that employs not only young people but the general population. Given the sector's importance, the strategy of tourism certification, which consists of proper training for the sector leading to professionalization and thus allowing for greater growth, becomes relevant.

"Today we have the community tourism certificate; for the first time, a national policy for community tourism exists, and well, Quintana Roo is a very strong pioneer in all matters of community tourism," shared the federal official during the Congress of Applied Research in Tourism (CIAT 2025), organized by the Universidad del Caribe.

She said the most important thing is that calls are now open through federal sector channels, where secretariats and private individuals can submit their initiatives to obtain the community tourism distinction. The call is already open, and this certification, she insisted, is fundamental to continue strengthening a sector that, she reaffirmed, is today the main employer of youth and the second-largest employer of women.

Regarding tourist behavior so far this year, she emphasized that from January to June 2026, there was a 13.6 percent growth in visitors (nationally), a historic figure. "It has a positive trend, and surely by working together we will achieve much more," she stated.

To consolidate this increase in visitors, work is already underway on different campaigns, focused, for example, on the upcoming FIFA 2026 World Cup, where Quintana Roo has shown its interest in being an entry point for thousands of fans of the sport, which is seen as a great opportunity and a window for Mexico to the world.

"We are less than 10 months away from the inaugural event next year in June, where the official host cities are Mexico City, Monterrey, and Guadalajara. However, what Secretary Josefina Rodríguez (head of Sectur) seeks is to bring the World Cup to all states, meaning the World Cup will be experienced in all states through the 'Pueblos Mágicos' (Magical Towns), and it will be a World Cup for everyone," she pointed out.