GIZ cooperates intensely with other development cooperation agencies, with enterprises and associations of the tourism industry, and with civil society organisations.

In Germany, a task team was formed in April 2005, consisting of representatives from seven governmental and non-governmental organisations with substantial expertise in the field of tourism. The goal of the team is to coordinate experiences, approaches and programmes and to link their respective contacts and alliances, in order to consolidate the German contributions to sustainable tourism and enhance their efficiency.

At the international level, GIZ maintains numerous working contacts with development agencies in other countries and with development banks.

During the General Assembly of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) from 25 November to 2 December 2005 in Dakar, the UNWTO, the French development directorate DGCID, the Dutch development organisation SNV, and GIZ (former GTZ) signed an agreement to coordinate their activities in the field of sustainable tourism. Poverty reduction through direct and indirect effects of the tourism industry, protection of natural resources and enhancement of environmental standards for tourism facilities are the common objectives.

In the private sector, GIZ cooperates with German tour operators and large hotel chains. Public-private partnerships (PPP) with renowned tourism operators like "Studiosus" and "Aventoura" provide the opportunity for tourists to visit GIZ projects and learn first-hand about the efforts of German Development Cooperation. In some cases, this has led to independent tourism offers. In another measure - in cooperation with the non-governmental organisation "International Business Leaders Forum" (IBLF) and the hotel chains Marriott, Starwood, and Intercontinental - youths from disadvantaged social groups are given the opportunity to attend vocational training with one of the leading hotel chains and thus to enhance their chances for a successful professional future.

Finally, GIZ collaborates with various, mostly German, universities that offer courses of study in tourism. The aim of this collaboration is to exchange knowledge and support of development-oriented research .