The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) recently released a new report emphasising the crucial role the travel industry will play in the economic recovery of the Americas post the COVID-19 pandemic.
WTTC recently produced its annual Economic Impact Report. According to the report, the trade body stated that tourism accounted for 8.8% of the total economy of the Americas in 2019. The report also mentioned that tourism was responsible for approximately 45 million jobs in the Americas which equals 9.8% of their total workforce.
The total amount of economic gain from international visitors is around $324 billion in the region. That represents 7.3% of all exports. The report also states that the Americas had a higher percentage of leisure travel, with 74% as compared to 26% for business travel.
In terms of spending, the region is also heavily dependent on domestic funds. The tourism GDP growth in the region outpaced the overall economy for two consecutive years. While tourism recorded a growth of 2.2% in 2019, the economy as a whole grew by 1.9%.
Therefore, WTTC is of the opinion that the money will be critical to the recovery with 81% of tourism cash attributed to domestic spending versus 19% from international spending.
Gloria Guevara, Chief Executive, World Travel & Tourism Council said in a statement that WTTC’s Economic Impact Report showcased that the economic recovery of the Americas depends largely on tourism. She mentioned that tourism was a total of 8.8% of the Americas’ entire economy.
She also said producing new jobs as well as bringing business and leisure travelers back will encourage suppliers of all sizes to restore their efforts to meet the demand once the trying times are over.
She further added that at present, the travel and tourism industry has up to 75 million jobs at immediate risk globally. In the U.S. alone nearly 5.9 million jobs are at risk. She informed that it will be crucial to call upon governments all across the world over the forthcoming months. She concluded that government involvement is required to ensure the survival of tourism.
