Since the beginning of 2023, Tunisia has welcomed over 2.1 million Libyan visitors, as revealed by the Tunisian National Tourism Office.
Ayman Rahmani, the Director of Studies and International Cooperation at the Office, reported these figures for the current tourist season.
He noted that Algerians topped the visitor list with 2.7 million, followed by Libyans at 2.1 million, and then the French with 974,000 tourists, as reported by Tunisian media sources on Saturday.
Tunisia’s tourism sector has seen a significant recovery since 2022, regaining 68% of its 2019 tourist numbers. Rahmani stated, “Our goal is to recover 80% of the tourist influx recorded in 2019.”
He added that from the beginning of the year until December 10, Tunisia has already surpassed this target, welcoming 8.8 million visitors compared to 8.7 million in the same period in 2019.
“If we maintain the same pace by the end of 2023, we will reach 9.6 million visitors,” Rahmani continued. Tourism revenues have reached approximately 2 billion euros. Rahmani described this figure as exceptional, considering the potential revenue of 6.9 billion Tunisian dinars by the end of 2023.
According to the World Bank, this revival has partially reduced Tunisia’s current account deficit, which is crucial for a country whose debt amounts to 80% of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
This improvement is attributed to an increase in foreign currency inflows amidst very weak economic growth (+1.2% as per the World Bank’s forecast for 2023).
The primary cause for the economic slowdown has been identified as the drought that hit Tunisia since the beginning of the year.
This drought has led to a decline in output in the country‘s crucial agricultural sector. Additionally, the war in Ukraine has escalated the costs of importing grains (both food and feed) and energy.
