Tourism
From The Report: Cote d'Ivoire 2022
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Côte d’Ivoire aims to establish tourism as the third pillar of its economy, with a target of attracting 5m foreign tourists per year and creating 700,000 jobs in the sector by 2025. These goals seek to build on the substantial gains the sector has made since the political and security situation stabilised in 2012. Tourism has grown steadily in the subsequent years, with international tourist arrivals rising 10-fold in 2011-19. The sector’s contribution to GDP increased from 0.6% to 8.5% over that same period, indicating robust recovery. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic and the imposition of global travel restrictions in early 2020, the government is forging ahead with investment plans to establish Côte d’Ivoire as a regional tourist destination.

This chapter includes an interview with Siandou Fofana, Minister of Tourism.

Articles from this Chapter

Overview

Blueprint for success: The country is positioning itself as a regional tourism destination, with plans to revive the sector following the Covid-19 pandemic
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Côte d’Ivoire aims to establish tourism as the third pillar of its economy with a target of attracting 5m foreign tourists per year and creating 700,000 jobs in the sector by 2025. These targets seek to build on the substantial gains the sector has made since the political and security situation stabilised in 2012. In the subsequent years tourism grew steadily, with international tourist arrivals rising 10-fold in 2011-19. The sector’s contribution to GDP increased from 0.6% to 8.5% over that…

Analysis

Bouncing back: The government is eyeing recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic using a long-term, multi-pronged strategy
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Promoting domestic tourism was identified as a key area of potential growth for Côte d’Ivoire’s tourism sector when the government first launched Sublime Côte d’Ivoire in 2018 and has since become an even more pressing priority. Travel restrictions imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic have kept international visitors away. Hotel room occupancy at iconic tourist resorts averages less than 40%, and the government is hoping that local tourists can fill this gap. Long-term projects include national…

Interview

Main attraction: Siandou Fofana, Minister of Tourism, on promoting the country as a destination for leisure and business travel
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Interview:Siandou Fofana What concrete steps should be taken to position Côte d’Ivoire as a leading tourist destination? SIANDOU FOFANA: Côte d’Ivoire’s ambition is to make the country one of the top-five destinations in Africa and to increase tourism’s contribution to GDP from 7.3% in 2019 to 10% by 2025. To that end, the government is committed to bringing in a total of 4.2m visitors by the aforementioned date. Projections suggest that GDP from tourism will double from CFA2.5trn…

Analysis

Greener destinations: The global tourism industry looks to adopt sustainable practices as part of its post-pandemic recovery strategy
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The global tourism industry faces numerous challenges when it comes to decarbonisation, as highlighted by a November 2021 report from the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), in collaboration with the UN Environment Programme and multinational consulting firm Accenture. In the years prior to the pandemic the sector thrived, recording its 10th consecutive year of growth in 2019. Moreover, with 1.5bn international tourist arrivals worldwide, it contributed more than 10% of global GDP and accounted…