tunisia tourism
Tunisia’s tourism industry, which was stalled by the shutdowns accompanying the corona epidemic in 2020 and 2021, partially recovered last year, receiving more than 6.4 million tourists and revenues of more than $1.3 billion.
“The results for the first quarter of this year were about 13 percent higher than the figures for the same period in 2019, as the number of tourist arrivals reached 1.6 million,” said Tunisian Tourism Minister Mohamed Al-Moez Belhoucine.
He noted that the goal was to get closer to the figures for all of 2019, when the country received 9.3 million tourists, including 2.7 million Europeans.
Lotfi Mani, Central Promotion Director of the National Tourism Administration, said that Tunisia, like the rest of the world, had completely paralyzed tourism activity for more than two years, continuing, “But in the middle of 2022, we turned a corner on the coronavirus pandemic. Page.”
Mani added that since May last year, tourism activities have gradually returned to a normal rhythm and the Ministry of Tourism has achieved the target set for 2022 as it was able to reach around 60% of 2019 as the reference year.
The authorities hope that the tourism industry will perform well this quarter, which will help revive the economy, which is suffering from a severe crisis, exacerbated by the corona pandemic, which has led to the bankruptcy of a large number of tourism agencies, who have lost tens of thousands. work.
Mane added that this year is heading in the same direction as expected last year, perhaps better through the booking system.
He explained that as of May 10, the numbers are good, with tourist arrivals reaching 2 million and 400,000, an increase of about 93.5% compared to the same period in 2022 and slightly lower than the 0.6% tax rate for 2019 figures.
Tourist overnight stays topped 4 million as of May 10, up about 57% from last year but down 24% from 2019, he added.
Tourism is one of Tunisia’s most important economic pillars, contributing more than 7% of the country’s GDP and providing 400,000 direct and indirect jobs.
Cautiously optimistic
According to Ahmed Bettayeb, President of the Tunisian Association of Travel Agents, the Tunisian destination has regained its attractiveness and is moving in a positive direction, with bookings now up 30% compared to pre-COVID-19-19 reference year 2019.
Bettayeb said the recorded positive indicators should not overshadow the challenges and issues currently facing travel agencies and the tourism industry, such as a shortage of bus fleets, difficulties in obtaining licenses to supply and renew transport fleets, and a lack of “qualified” manpower for some tourism specialties, as well as the lack of “qualified” manpower in doing business. The private sector should not be involved in matters related to the Tunisian tourism sector until a decision has been taken.
Dora Milad, president of the Tunisian Hotels Association, said she was optimistic that Tunisia’s tourism industry would recover this year after two years of stagnation, but that improvement depended on the development of tourism services.
From the beginning of the year to March 2023, revenue from tourism in Tunisia increased by 66% compared to the same period last year, according to official data published by the Central Bank of Tunisia.
Dora Millard mentioned that despite the positive indicators, the tourism industry still faces some difficulties, most notably the conditions of land, sea and air transport, and the lack of improvement in infrastructure, not only at the equipment level but even at the organizational level, she said .
People in the industry hope that Tunisia’s tourism industry can return to its original state and regain its status as one of the world’s top tourist destinations with its unique characteristics.
On the other hand, they called for more support for this important sector, the growth and prosperity of which is reflected in several other sectors.
Tunisian Tourism Minister: Tunisian tourists travel normally