Jobs bloodbath in tourism sector

ELLANIE SMIT Over 31 000 jobs lost in 2020Haphazard regulations blamedDomestic tourists keep businesses afloatVisitor exports drop significantlyTourism bosses scratch heads for solutions WINDHOEK Ideas on how to resuscitate the tourism industry will come in handy as the sector looks to devise measures to prevent further job losses countrywide.The tourism sector, which is amongst the top contributors to the country’s fiscus, shed 27.6% of its jobs during 2020 alone, mainly due to the restrictions put in place by governments worldwide to curb the spread of the deadly Covid-19 virus.This is according to the latest Travel and Tourism Economic Impact report released by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC.) The research conducted by the WTTC covered 185 countries.The report indicated that the industry in 2019 employed 111 900 people, and in 2020, this had declined to 81 100. This is about 11.1% of the country’s employment.This includes employment by hotels, travel agents, airlines and other passenger transportation services, but excludes commuter services. The figure also included the activities of the restaurant and leisure industries that are directly supported by tourists.In 2019, the report predicted that the travel and tourism industry in Namibia was expected to generate 122 200 direct jobs by 2029, contributing 15.7% of the total employment in the country.The total contribution of the industry dropped by 41.4% during that period. It contributed 15.3% to the total economy, about N$ 28.81 million in 2019, dropping to 9.8% (N$16.87 million) in 2020.Spending from domestic tourism contributed more than visitors from other countries, while leisure tourists spent more than business travellers to the country.Visitor exports downThe report also indicated that money spent by foreign visitors to a country - known as visitor exports - is a key component of the direct contribution of the travel and tourism industry.Last year, Namibia generated N$2.3 million in visitor exports, which is a decrease of 65.5% from 2019 when it was N$6.6 million.Meanwhile, leisure travel spending, including both inbound and domestic travellers, generated 85% of the direct travel and tourism contribution to Namibia’s gross domestic product (GDP) last year. This is in comparison with 18% for business travel spending.Also, domestic travel spending generated 82% of the direct travel and tourism contribution to the country’s GDP last year compared with the 18% for international spending.The tourism ministry has not yet released official figures on tourism statistics for last year.OptimisticCEO of the Hospitality Association of Namibian (HAN) Gitta Paetzold said figures for 2021 will look slightly better as the tourism sector was recovering with borders that had opened during the year.However, with the travel restrictions that were again implemented during November, the industry “lost hope”, she added.“Many businesses such as guesthouses and guest farms are now in the market, leading to more job losses.”According to her, people have become very sceptical as tourism figures were just starting to pick up “when one man came and decided to implement these travel restrictions”, due to Omicron.Paetzold said the only way that this can be prevented is if the world stops implementing these short-term travel regulations and stops “punishing the travel and tourism industry”.According to her, regulations must either be set up that the entire world can implement, or must be stopped all together.She said what is frustrating for tourists is the fact that regulations are changed every few months, which impacts international tourists who plan their holidays well in advance.Furthermore, low vaccination numbers in Namibia counts against the country, she said.ellanie@namibiansun.com

Jobs bloodbath in tourism sector

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-01

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Jobs bloodbath in tourism sector

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Namibian Sun 2025-07-01

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