Africa-Press – Tanzania. IT might not have seemed to bite much since last year, but Covid-19 has proved to be a great tragedy as it has caused the East African Community (EAC) partner states to a staggering 4.8bn US dollars loss in tourism and hospitality industry.
This is a record loss, as the six states exercised different kinds of lockdowns – some observing total lockdowns while others making it partial, but adhering to different measures such as social distancing, washing of hands and use of sanitisers however was harshly punished as tourists did not come in from overseas.
A new study conducted by the East African Business Council (EABC) on the impact of Covid-19 in the tourism and hospitality sector reveals that 2.1 million jobs were lost in 2020 in Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi and South Sudan. The study that was conducted with the support of the African Economic Research Consortium (AERC) and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation established that the EAC partner states lost the international tourism receipts.
It has also proposed measures to contain further negative effects of the pandemic.
“East Africa Community (EAC) partner states are estimated to have lost international tourism receipts to the tune of 4.8bn US dollars in the year 2020, following the Covid-19 pandemic,” the study so found.
Report released yesterday by the EABC, that is the regional apex body of private sector associations and corporate from the EAC member countries, said the research was aimed at assessing the impact of Covid-19 on the tourism and hospitality industry and policy options to protect sector players from Covid-19 disruptions and future pandemics.
The study reveals that tourism that contributed to an average of 9.5 percent in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2019 and an average of 17.2 percent to EAC total exports was one of the most affected areas in the region.
“This was reflected in massive reductions in international tourist arrivals, receipts, jobs, visitors to parks and hotel occupancy rates. From March 2020 when the first cases of Covid-19 were reported in the region, the report reveals that 4.2 million foreign tourists were unable to travel to their preferred destinations in the bloc,” noted the report on the findings.
That saw a dip of about two million jobs, from the about 4.1 million jobs recorded in 2019 to 2.2 million jobs by the end of the year. The study also revealed that visitors to national parks declined significantly by about 65 percent, impacting negatively wildlife conservation efforts in the region.
It also shows that hotels in the region registered average occupancy rates of below 30 percent, thus affecting their operations significantly, including maintaining staff. An online survey conducted as part of the study indicated that 26.5 percent of the businesses lost their entire projected revenues during the pandemic period, 44 percent lost 75 percent of their projected revenues and 17.6 percent lost 50 percent of their projected revenues.
The respondents indicated that 35 percent reduced staff by more than 50percent, while others 20 percent reduced staff by below and up to 50 percent and 32 percent maintained staff at partial pay and only eight percent maintained all staff at full pay.
The report indicates that businesses turned to borrowing to fund their running expenditures such as rent and utilities due to reduced operational capital while the loss of jobs saw a decline in household incomes, Speaking during a webinar validating the studies yesterday, Mr Dennis Karera, EABC Vice Chairman noted that the study would contribute to developing macro-economic policy options for consideration and adoption by EAC Partner States.
“Adopting an EAC coordinated approach in reviving the tourism sector by marketing the region as a single tourist destination, opening EAC skies, rolling out national-wide vaccination drives and mutual recognition of Covid-19 test certificates in the region is certainly critical,” he said.
The Study recommended for tourism destinations to have pandemic preparedness and risk management plans to minimize such instances in the future.
