Uganda’s Tourism sector has continued to register significant and progressive improvements as shown by several development indicators such as tourist arrivals, foreign exchange earnings, growth in domestic tourism, employment and tourism business among others, the Minister of Tourism, Wildlife and Antiquities Prof. Ephraim Kamuntu has said.
Kamuntu said during the 10th Annual Tourism Sector Review Conference at Hotel Africana that ran under the theme ‘Tourism as a dynamic driver for social-economic transformation that Uganda’s tourist arrivals grew by 7.4% from 1.402 million in 2017 to 1.505 million in 2018.
“The foreign exchange earnings also grew by 10.1% from US$ 1.45 billion in 2017 to US$ 1.6 billion. A total of 667,600 people were employed in the Travel and Tourism industry, which constitutes nearly 6.7% of Uganda’s Labor force,” stressed Kamuntu.
This visible success Kamuntu attributed it to combined efforts between various stakeholders including the Ministry, its agencies, the Private Sector, Civil Society Organizations, Development Partners, and NRM Government that has provided security and safety for the sector to flourish.
“There is no doubt about the centrality of the Tourism sector in driving the economy of the country,” he concluded.
Source: EastAfrican Business Week