Tourist arrivals in Zimbabwe eased 3% to 1,115 million in the first half ended June 30, 2019 compared with 1,148 million, a year earlier, according to a local media report.
The tourism sector in the southern African nation has plateaued since the first quarter of the year due to the struggling local economy.
NewsDay reports, without citing any source, that visitors from Europe dropped 21% to 79 939 from 101 101 tourists recorded at the same time in 2018.
The number of tourists from America also fell 17% to 47 099 during the period under consideration from the previous year’s 56 682.
Tourists from Oceania registered a 7% drop to 16 244 compared to 17 511 visitors, a year earlier, while visitors from Asia also fell 6% to 47 223 from 50 433 recorded during the same period in 2018. However, visitors from other African countries rose by a marginal 0,3% to 921 324 compared with 919 023, a year earlier.
Tourists from the Middle East also jumped 4% to 3 513 from the previous year’s 3 364.
Data released by the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority show that tourist arrivals into Zimbabwe reached about 2,6 million in 2018, up 6% from 2,4 million registered in 2017.
It said the growth was, “driven by the notable increases from all source regions except for the Americas”.
Tourism contributed 7.2% to Zimbabwe’s Gross Domestic Product in 2018.
The country’s tourism receipts reached about $1,4 billion in 2018 compared with $917 million in 2017.
The exit of the late President Robert Mugabe towards the end of 2017 helped contribute to a sharp increase in tourist arrivals, the majority of them from high spending markets, which bring substantial foreign currency into the country.
