Eco-Friendly or Eco-Fraud? Investigating Greenwashing in Tourism and Hospitality Across MENA Countries Employing the Travel & Tourism Development Index (TTDI).

In recent years, sustainability practices have emerged as one of the most significant global issues, drawing attention at both the micro (i.e., companies) and macro (i.e., countries) levels. These practices aim to implement responsible activities that address the three pillars of sustainability. However, the phenomenon of greenwashing has emerged, which involves exaggerating or misleading the public about an entity's environmental responsibility. This research explores the phenomenon of greenwashing within tourism organizations, its impact on customer loyalty, and how companies use greenwashing to legitimize their practices, as outlined in the literature. In order to address the research questions, the study aims to quantify and classify the level of greenwashing on the national level by employing a data-driven approach based on the Travel and Tourism Development Index (TTDI) framework developed by the World Economic Forum among MENA countries. To assess the gap between stated commitments and actual performance, the research applied the Mean Arctangent Absolute Percentage Error (MAAPE) and t-test. The study also developed a Sustainability Gap Index (SGI) and created a classification scale to categorize the levels of greenwashing across the sample countries as low, moderate, or high. The overall trend suggests a gradient of greenwashing intensity across the region. The analysis reveals a pattern suggesting that economies with lower income levels or reduced global competitiveness are associated with lower greenwashing tendencies. The study recommends that national tourism authorities should mandate standardized sustainability disclosure frameworks linked to verifiable indicators and enhance data reliability and transparency methods.