Zimbabwe Tourism Authority (ZTA) preliminary results indicate that the tourism sector is estimated to have generated $1, 051 billion in 2018 foreign receipts in the economy, which is a 15 per cent growth $ 918 million in 2017.
In a publication, the authority estimated domestic tourism to have generated about $335 million during the same period consolidating the overall tourism earnings to 1$,386 billion.
“To a larger, extent, this positive performance consolidates the position of the tourism sector as a key driver in the economic growth of Zimbabwe,” ZTA says.
“The current strong momentum is expected to continue in 2019.”
Although the 2018 tourism arrival figure for the USA fell by 6% to 95,025 in 2018 from 101,206 in 2017, it still remains the biggest overseas market followed closely by the United Kingdom.
Zimbabwe’s top 5 markets in 2018 in their order include USA, UK, Germany, South Korea and Japan.
“A notable mover was South Korea which moved from 8th position to 4th position displacing traditional markets like France and Benelux,” the tourism authority says.
The movement of South Korea also pulled out Australia from Top 5 to number 6.
At a global level, the World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) World Tourism Barometer, International tourist arrivals grew by 6 per cent in 2018 to reach a total of 1,4 billion from the 1.3 billion in 2017
Tourist arrivals to Zimbabwe reached 2,579,974 in 2018, up from 2,422,930 received in 2017.