By Yunus S Saliu
A research from the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) has indicated travel and tourism sector’s continued sluggish recovery will see its year-on-year contribution to global GDP rise by less than one third in 2021.
The Council, representing the global Travel and Tourism private sector indicated further that the sector has been hampered by the lack of international coordination, severe travel restrictions and slower vaccination rates in some parts of the world which still hamper many regions of the world.
As published by the WTTC, “In 2019, the Travel and Tourism sector generated nearly USD 9.2 trillion to the global economy, however in 2020, the pandemic brought Travel and Tourism to an almost complete standstill which resulted in a 49.1% drop, representing a punishing loss of nearly USD$ 4.5 trillion.
“While the global economy is set to receive a modest 30.7% year on year increase from Travel & Tourism in 2021, this will only represent USD 1.4 trillion and is mainly driven by domestic spending.
“The economic modelling was conducted by Oxford Economics on behalf of WTTC and calculated a baseline scenario based on the current global vaccination rollout, consumer confidence and relaxed travel restrictions in some in regions around the world.”
According to WTTC, the research reveals that “at the current rate of recovery, Travel and Tourism’s contribution to the global economy could see a similar moderate year on year rise of 31.7% in 2022.”
Meanwhile, last year, WTTC revealed the loss of a staggering 62 million Travel and Tourism jobs around the world and with the current pace of recovery, “jobs are set to rise by only 0.7% this year.”
Similarly, research shows a more hopeful potential year-on-year jobs rise across the sector next year, by a positive 18%.
However, the President and CEO of WTTC, Julia Simpson, said: “Our research clearly shows that while the global Travel and Tourism sector is beginning to recover from the ravages of COVID-19 there are still too many restrictions in place, an uneven vaccine rollout, resulting in a slower than expected recovery of just under a third this year.
“Last year, 62 million Travel & Tourism jobs were lost globally, and our data shows a rise of a meagre 0.7% this year. While next year is looking more positive in terms of the global economy and jobs, the current rate of recovery is simply not fast enough and is in the most part driven by domestic travel, which will not achieve a full economic recovery.”
But she quickly disclosed that “If governments can start looking internationally and support Travel & Tourism with simplified rules to enable the safe return of travel, there is the opportunity to save jobs and boost economic wealth.”
According to the research, the sector’s contribution to global GDP and the rise in jobs could be more positive this year and next, if the following measures are met:
The research, according to the WTTC publication, shows that if these four vital rules, one, allow fully vaccinated travellers to move freely, irrespective of their origin or eventual destination, removing complex tiered systems; two, the implementation of digital solutions which enable all travellers to easily prove their COVID status, so in turn speeding up the process at borders around the world; third, recognition of all vaccines authorised by the World Health Organisation (WHO) and/or any of the Stringent Regulatory Authorities (SRA); four, agreement from all relevant authorities that international travel is safe with enhanced health and safety protocols, are followed before the end of 2021, the impact on the global economy and jobs could be significant.