Tax on tourism comes with share of unknowns for an industry yet to recover from COVID-19

Tourism, which was once a beacon of hope for countries to diversify their economies, has been taking some serious battering since the spread of COVID-19.

Its association with aviation, another main casualty of the pandemic, further deepened the scars for a sector that will need years to regain its pre-pandemic number of international arrivals - and with it - spending. While how long is anyone’s guess, preserving a country’s standing in tourism would take more than the pandemic going away and travellers getting back on planes.

Akin to any other sector expected to drive diversification efforts, and overall economic growth in the country, tourism must be supported and nurtured to ensure its long-haul survival.

COVID-19 has highlighted the importance of tourism, except that such importance is not linked to the number of travellers arriving at or going through a country’s points of entry. Rather, the economic activity that they generate in sectors directly associated with tourism, like hospitality.