Tourism Can Become Major Contributor to GDP
A Tourism Enthusiast says the sector has potential to be the leading contributor to Zambia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), if well harnessed.
Speaking when he featured on Money FM’s breakfast show today, Mulenga Muntemba noted that the tourism sector in Africa is worth over US$5 billion, and Zambia which is part of the Continent, stands to benefit from this share if government, the private sector and everybody else gets fully involved in supporting the local industry.
Mr. Muntemba stated that there is need for all stakeholders to try and invest more resources in the tourism industry so as to divert the country’s dependency on mining and agriculture sectors.
He added that apart from being a source of foreign exchange (forex), tourism also brings about a lot of development into the country.
“The tourism industry in Africa is worth over US$5 billion, Zambia is part of Africa, so there is a huge share of that for Zambia as well, so there is a lot of money. Apart forex, tourism also brings a lot of development,” Mr. Muntemba noted.
Mr. Muntemba encouraged Zambians to explore various tourism sites in the country to help promote growth of the industry.
“If the government, private sector and everybody else gets involved in it and if we all focus and try to pump in more money and more resources, we can actually make a lot of money and divert our dependency on the mining and agriculture sectors. Tourism can actually boom and be the number one leading sector in terms of Zambia’s GDP contribution,” he stated.
Zambia’s tourism sector grew by 4 percent in the first quarter of 2024 but contracted by 2.7 percent in the second quarter due to the shortage of electricity resulting from the drought.
The sector is projected to see a steady increase in visitor numbers, with tourist arrivals expected to reach approximately 1.37 million by 2028.
According to ReportLinker, this marks an increase from around 1.22 million arrivals in 2023, reflecting an average annual growth rate of 1.9%.
In terms of financial gains from tourism, Zambia’s receipts are forecast to hit roughly $602 million by 2028, up from $523 million in 2023, representing an average annual growth rate of 2.2%.
