CLAIM: Zimbabwe generated $1.1 billion from 1.6 million international tourists in 2023
SOURCE: Account on X (formerly Twitter)
VERDICT: True
On the 4th of April 2024, an account on X (formerly Twitter) with the user name @AfricaFactsZone claimed that Zimbabwe generated US$1.1 billion from 1.6 million international tourists in 2023.
This was quote tweeted by an account linked to President E.D Mnangagwa, @snowballOfficia, to much skepticism.
‘Structured Propangada (sic)🤣🤣🙌’, was one response.
Zimbabwe’s tourism sector experienced a significant increase in revenue, reaching US$1.1 billion in 2023.
According to the Zimbabwe Tourism Authority’s Tourism Trends and Statistics Report of 2022, this was a 22% increase from 2022’s earnings of US$911 million. The growth in tourism revenue is attributed to the recovery of the sector following the Covid-19 pandemic and the lifting of travel restrictions.
The number of international tourist arrivals in Zimbabwe rose to 1.6 million up from 1 million in 2022. This surge in arrivals represents a recovery and a return to pre-pandemic levels. The first half of 2023 alone saw an increase in tourist arrivals with a total of 592,567 visitors. By the end of September 2023 tourist arrivals had increased by 41.9% to 494,878, compared to the same period in 2022. According to the Sunday Mail, the tourists mainly came from the traditional source markets, including Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East.
Investments into Zimbabwe’s tourism sector showed a decline by 55% in the first 9 months of 2023 which stood at US$139 million down from US$306.7 million in 2022.
Conclusion
The data indicates that the Zimbabwean tourism sector has made a recovery in 2023,with increases in both earnings and arrivals.The claim by @AfricaFactsZone that Zimbabwe generated $1.1 billion from 1.6 million international tourists is rated as true.
