Aiming High: Tunisia Targets 11 million Inbound Tourists for 2025

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Tunisia aims to attract more than 11 million tourists in 2025 as the country strives to broaden its tourism offerings, stated Tourism Minister Sofiane Tekaya. The North African country is launching a public-private initiative to promote coastal, health, cultural, and environmental tourism. The plan includes boosting air connectivity with major European markets through partnerships with airlines and travel firms.

The announcement follows a strong performance in Tunisia’s tourism sector last year, with foreign arrivals hitting 10.25 million. Tourism is a critical pillar of Tunisia’s economy, contributing roughly 10 per cent of GDP and providing hundreds of thousands of jobs. The country has historically drawn visitors to its Mediterranean beaches, ancient ruins, and Sahara Desert attractions, though political instability and security concerns have periodically impacted the sector.

According to 2024 Economic Impact Research (EIR) by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC), tourism in Tunisia will propel not only revenue, but also job numbers, and domestic visitor spending, surpassing all previous records. According to the data, travel and tourism’s economic contribution will represent 14 pc of the overall economy this year, while sector jobs are projected to grow 3.9 pc year-on-year to reach almost 418,000, accounting for one in nine jobs.

The statement adds that domestic visitor spending is anticipated to grow 5 pc from last year to reach TND 11.7 billion, 0.7 pc ahead of 2019. While the amount spent by foreign visitors is predicted to increase by over 12 pc to nearly TND 11 billion, this will still fall short of 2019 levels by almost 9 pc, says WTTC.

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WTTC says that the re-establishment of the Higher Council of Tourism by the Tunisian Government will further help tourism achieve these forecasts as it brings together the public and private sectors, ensuring collaboration across interested parties. According to the latest research, the sector’s contribution to Tunisia’s GDP surged almost 24 pc year-on-year to reach nearly TND 21 billion last year. The jobs supported by the tourism sector grew by almost 10 pc to reach more than 402,000, representing almost 11.5 pc of jobs in the country. Domestic visitor spending increased more than 7 pc year-on-year to reach more than TND 11 billion. In contrast, international visitor spending saw a strong 48.8 pc year-on-year growth last year, to reach TND 9.6 billion.

WTTC is forecasting that the sector could grow its annual GDP contribution to more than TND 32 billion by 2034, representing 16 pc of Tunisia’s economy. It could potentially employ over 485,000 people across the country.