WTTC’s 2024 Economic Impact Study highlights that Tunisia’s travel and tourism sector is poised to inject a record 23 billion Tunisian dinars into the economy, with employment and domestic spending also set to reach record highs.
LONDON, UK – Tunisia’s travel and tourism sector is set to inject a record-breaking 23 billion Tunisian dinars into the national economy this year, according to the World Travel and Tourism Council’s (WTTC) 2024 Economic Impact Study (EIR). The latest data shows that travel and tourism is expected to surpass all previous records in Tunisia this year in terms of economic contribution, number of jobs and domestic tourist spending. International tourist spending is not expected to fully recover this year, but the World Tourism Organization expects it to approach its 2019 peak. According to the data, travel and tourism’s economic contribution is expected to account for 14% of the total economy this year, with the sector’s employment growing 3.9% year-on-year to about 418,000, accounting for one in nine jobs.
Domestic tourist spending in Tunisia is expected to reach 11.7 billion dinars, up 5% from last year and 0.7% above 2019. International tourist spending is expected to grow by more than 12% to nearly 11 billion dinars, but still nearly 9% below 2019 levels.
Julia Simpson, president and CEO of WTTC, said: “Tunisia’s travel and tourism sector has almost fully recovered, with domestic and sector-wide contributions exceeding all previous records. While international visitor spending has yet to catch up, we are confident that Tunisia’s resilient sector will continue to thrive and play a key role in the country’s economic future.”
The re-establishment of the Tunisian Government’s High Council for Tourism will further help the travel and tourism industry achieve these projections, as it brings together the public and private sectors and ensures cooperation between stakeholders.
According to the latest survey, the travel and tourism sector’s contribution to Tunisia’s GDP increased by approximately 24% year-on-year to approximately Tunisian Dinars 21 billion. Employment supported by travel and tourism grew by nearly 10% to more than 402,000, accounting for approximately 11.5% of employment in the country. Domestic tourist spending increased by more than 7% year-on-year to exceed Tunisian Dinars 11 billion.
Spending by international visitors grew strongly last year, increasing 48.8% from the previous year to TND 9.6 billion, but was still nearly 19% lower than its 2019 peak.
WTTC projects that with the right government support, the sector’s annual GDP contribution could grow to more than 32 billion TND by 2034, accounting for 16 percent of the Tunisian economy and employing more than 485,000 people across the country.
Across North Africa, the travel and tourism sector is forecast to contribute TND225.7 billion to the regional economy this year, 8.5 percent of the total. Jobs supported by the sector are expected to grow to 5.3 million, accounting for one in 11 jobs in the region.
Domestic tourist spending is forecast to reach TND97.5 billion this year, while international tourist spending is expected to reach TND101.9 billion.
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