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WINDHOEK. – Namibia recorded an increase of 37,81 percent of tourists arrivals in the country from January to December 2021, when compared to 2020 figures, an official said on Tuesday.
“Country arrivals were 354,508 in 2021 as compared to 192,026 in 2020. This is an important achievement for the sector,” Namibia’s Minister of Environment and Tourism Pohamba Shifeta said.
Namibia’s Ministry of Environment and Tourism spokesperson, Romeo Muyunda said that so much has been lost in terms of income, revenue and employment in the tourism industry due to the ripple effects of Covid-19.
The sector will need to move slowly towards recovery and this will require them to be innovative in their product offering and put in measures to prepare them for similar occurrences.
According to Muyunda, Namibia’s government interventions like relaxing some restrictions to allow for tourists to visit the country and initiatives also aimed at developing the confidence of tourists to visit Namibian as a safe destination.
Lin Bo, a manager of China Travel Agency, who has been deeply involved in Namibia’s tourism market for 12 years, said that Namibia’s tourism industry developed rapidly in the first few years before the epidemic.
Based on her long-term optimism about the tourism market in Namibia, her company has increased investment since 2015, building a boutique hotel in Walvis Bay, a popular tourist attraction, and a wildlife park in Sossusvlei. But the sudden outbreak of the pandemic in 2020 has hit the entire tourism industry hard, and like other peers, they are also experiencing considerable financial difficulties.
“The epidemic will pass, and the recovery of tourism will eventually come,” said Lin. – Xinhua News
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