São Paulo – Tourism revenues were up 44% in Tunisia year-on-year from September 2018 to August 2019, its government reported. The industry saw TND 3.16 billion (USD 1.1 billion at current exchange rate). Tunisia welcomed 8.3 million tourists last year. Pictured are tourists at a Tunis street market.
Major European operators returned to Tunisia last year after a three-year hiatus caused by attacks on tourists.
The industry is a major source of foreign revenue for Tunisia, where it accounts for 8% for Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The Central Bank reported TND 2.19 billion (USD 762 million) in tourism revenues in the September 2017-August 2018 period.
Tourism minister René Trabelsi was quoted in an official statement as saying 9 million people are expected to visit the country in 2019. Major promotional campaigns are being rolled out in a drive to bring back travelers from habitual markets like France, England and Germany.
That could mean a big boost to the economy – which is struggling – and to foreign exchange reserves.
Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
