Tourism adds 15% to GDP

Despite the current economic challenges that the country is facing, the tourism sector's sustainability has buoyed the sector and the industry may surpass the agricultural sector in terms of employment contribution in the country.This is according to the permanent secretary of the environment ministry, Malan Lindeque, who said although the Namibian economy was under pressure with declining resources the tourism sector had shown remarkable sustainability. According to Lindeque, it is estimated that the sector currently contributes 15% of the gross domestic product (GDP) and when the new figures on the contribution of the sector are released later this year, the sector's contribution to the GDP may be higher.“The tourism sector may even have surpassed agriculture in terms of employment,” Lindeque said.However, the sector is not without its challenges and according to the director of tourism and gaming, Sem Shikongo, the potential of Namibian tourism has not yet been fully explored and realised.He said tourism was the fastest growing sector in Namibia, with the latest statistics indicating that it had created 81 000 jobs, or 22% of total employment in Namibia. Also, tourist numbers had increased from 220 000 tourist arrivals in 1992 to 1.4 million in 2014.Shikongo pointed out that it was important for Namibia to address the challenges that the sector as facing. He said the sector must grab the opportunities because tourism was the most competitive industry in the world. He said unfortunately Namibia was not a first-class safari destination. Highlighting some of the major challenges, Shikongo said administrative and bureaucratic inefficiency such as visas, permits and other requirements remained a huge challenge for the industry.Other challenges included access to capital, access to serviced land, inadequate road infrastructure and the fact that domestic tourism was not prioritised.He said a lack of understanding of the tourism market and market structure resulted in unsustainable investments.There was also a lack of a national marketing strategy with a focus on priority markets, as well as a lack of appropriately trained and skilled staff.“The Namibian tourism sector is in a critical need of well-trained and skilled staff. The focus seems to have been largely on academic training. However, what is needed is finding the balance as there is now a critical need for skills in the sector. Recognition of prior learning becomes essential as there are many who have the skills but not the formal papers.”Other challenges included general tourism regulations such as guide registration, cross-border tourism, grading, accreditation of training establishments, registration of different guide qualifications and ensuring continued access to market entrants. To address these challenges, two tourism bodies have been established which will drive the development and growth of tourism in Namibia. These two - the national tourism investment and promotion strategy and the national sustainable tourism growth and development strategy - were both launched last year. These strategies aim to grow tourist arrivals in Namibia by 8% by 2020 and to increase the receipts from tourist arrivals by about 50%. This will be done through an investment of about N$800 million for specific projects that have been identified. The tourism minister, Pohamba Shifeta, last week launched the national tourism competitiveness advisory council and the inter-ministerial committee on tourism development. The tourism advisory council will be responsible for identifying the challenges in the tourism sector and communicating the information to the ministerial committee, which will be responsible for necessary policy changes. Shifeta said the establishment of these two tourism bodies was critical for the growth of the sector and they aimed to transform Namibia into a competitive tourism industry. That would bring Namibia on par with international standards, said Shifeta. He said the needs and aspirations of the industry must be understood and it was time to address the concerns that had been raised and come up with solutions. “The potential is enormous,” said Shifeta. “We have limited resources and it is our duty that we make sure we spend the money on the right things to get the best outcomes.” ELLANIE SMIT

Tourism adds 15% to GDP

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Namibian Sun 2025-01-29

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Tourism adds 15% to GDP

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Namibian Sun 2025-01-29

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