Increased tourist arrivals at Namibian Airports

The tourism sector recorded a substantial recovery during the second quarter of 2022. According to the Bank of Namibia (BoN) Quarterly Bulletin, the recovery in the sector was due to increased tourist arrivals as more travel restrictions were lifted.The total number of passengers arriving from other countries at Namibian airports rose to 78 642 during the second quarter of 2022 from 33 306 passengers registered during the same quarter of 2021, the central bank pointed.The yearly increases in the airport arrivals were reflected in both international and regional arrivals, though numbers still fell short of their pre-pandemic levels by a fairly high margin. Year-on-year, the number of international passengers arriving at the Namibian airports increased from 13 091 during the second quarter of 2021 to 36 751 registered during the second quarter of 2022.Regional passenger arrivals also increased from 20 215 during the second quarter of 2021 to 41 891 recorded during the second quarter of 2022, BoN added.According to Simonis Storm, between January to August 2022, Namibian airports average 12 044 international arrivals per month, compared to a monthly average of 3 840 for the same period last year. July 2022 recorded the highest number of foreign arrivals since October 2019.OccupancyA national occupancy rate of 61.3% was recorded during August 2022, compared to 51.0% in the prior month and 20.7% in August 2021, according to the Hospitality Association of Namibia (HAN).Year to date, the national occupancy rate averages 36.2%, compared to 20.2% for the same period in 2021, showing an improvement in tourist inflows.In maintaining this momentum and keeping occupancy levels afloat, Namibia will have to address issues around the availability of rental vehicles and flight access, Simonis Storm said.HAN has received reports of potential travellers who have to cancel or postpone their visit to Namibia due to rental car shortages and limited availability on flights. This signals that tourist demand for Namibia remains high and provides the country with an opportunity to stimulate economic activity.Simonis also noted that the scraping of Covid-19 related regulations will bode well for tourist inflows in coming months.According to the Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), the hotels and restaurants sector witnessed an increase in real value added of 8.9% (N$593 million) during the second quarter of 2022, compared to an increase of 37.6% registered in the corresponding quarter of 2021.Overall, Namibia’s real gross domestic product expanded by 5.6% (N$36 billion) during the second quarter of 2022.-phillep@nmh.com.na

Increased tourist arrivals at Namibian Airports

Comments

Namibian Sun 2025-06-18

Please login to leave a comment

Increased tourist arrivals at Namibian Airports

Comments

Namibian Sun 2025-06-18

Please login to leave a comment

Login