Erongo tourism forum moves in the right direction
By Adolf Kaure.
The Erongo Governor, Neville Andre, said inclusivity in the tourism industry is vital for the economic development of the region and Namibia when he spoke at the recent Erongo Tourism Forum workshop in Swakopmund.
The workshop was attended by various tourism experts in the country to discuss industry topics and provide lasting solutions for the industry.
According to Andre, the Erongo Tourism Forum is moving very fast into the direction we want.
“Over the past few months, we have met relentlessly as a forum, and I am pleased with the forum. We need more involvement of all the operators and role players to successfully revive the tourism industry,” said Andre.
According to recent tourism statistics, foreign arrivals to Namibia has been increasing every quarter. Namibia received a total of 76,472 foreign arrivals in the first quarter, January to March of 2022. In the second quarter, April to June, 119,134 foreign visitors arrived.
This indicates a 55.8% quarter on quarter increase.
Furthermore, in the third quarter of 2022, July to September, 150,491 visitors entered the country. This shows a 26.3% increase in foreign arrivals from the second to the third quarter.
The projection indicates that Namibia expects a total of 190,942 foreign arrivals in quarter 4 which is a 26.6% increase from quarter 3.
The governor said that despite the increase in arrivals which has helped the tourism industry to be on the right trajectory to recover, more work is needed to get it back to pre-Covid -19 levels.
“We need to develop our products in line with the demands from the market and we equally need to look at building a strong brand for Namibia by utilising multiple advertising platforms,” he said.
The workshop culminates in the development of a three-year action plan for the Erongo Tourism Forum.
Another action point is to position Swakopmund as a destination tourism hub in Namibia. A task force will be appointed to spearhead this development.
The Erongo Tourism Forum was launched in June to develop regional tourism opportunities and to market the region as a key tourism destination. monitor and develop the tourism industry in the region.
