Tunisia: Tourist arrivals drop by 34.4 %

Tourist arrivals fell by 34.4% from 2010 to 2011, reaching 3,589,000 visitors. This drop of arrivals was by about 70% in February, 56% in March and 54% in May 2011. National Tunisian Tourism Board (NTTB) general manager Habib Ammar said, on Tuesday in Tunis during the regular meeting with the press, that the tourism revenues went down by 38.5% to 1.624 million dinars, from January to September 2011, while bed-nights dropped by 42.6%. The crisis in the tourism sector caused the loss of about 32,000 jobs, including 3,000 permanent jobs, following the closure of 24 hotels (7,500 beds) since the beginning of the year, he underlined. The NTTB general manager pointed out that the tour operators are uncertain about the Tunisia destination, waiting for the outcome of the upcoming elections in the country. He went on saying that Tunisia succeeded, thanks to its participation in the Top Resa 2011 tourism fair in France, to convince air companies, such as Transavia, to resume their activities in Tunisia. Speaking about the Tunisian participation in the JATA tourism fair in Japan, on September 30-October 2, 2011, NTTB director-general emphasised the opportunities provided by that market, notably for the Saharan and cultural tourism. Mr. Ammar said that a delegation of Japanese International Co-operation Agency (JICA) will visit Tunisia, from late October to early November, to examine means to energise two countries' tourist co-operation.  He also announced that a "group of Japanese tour operators will pay, shortly, a visit to Tunisia to enquire about the Tunisian tourist products".