The latest report of the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) has revealed that the Colombian capital Bogotá maintains a positive growth in the contribution of the Travel and Tourism sector to the city’s GDP.
According to the WTTC, in 2019, the travel and tourism sector contributed nearly $2.9 billion to Bogotá’s GDP, representing 3.4 percent of the total economy, VisaGuide.World reports.
A year later, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the decline was almost 80 percent. However, the year we left behind saw a recovery of 72.4 percent, contributing to the city’s GDP by 2.4 percent and almost 39 percent to the country’s economy.
The WTTC report also shows that in 2022 the level of jobs corresponding to the sector increased by almost 48 percent compared to the previous year, reaching more than 154,500 jobs. This represents 3.3 percent of all jobs in the city of Bogotá, and with this figure, the employment levels of the sector have reached the same level as the records of 2019.
As for international expenses, in 2021, they contributed almost 0.7 billion dollars; meanwhile, they saw an increase of 132 percent in 2022, reaching 1.6 billion dollars. At the same time, domestic spending increased by 45 percent, reaching a contribution of nearly $2.8 billion.
As WTTC explains, Bogotá is one of the most attractive cities in Latin America for travelers, and the United States is one of its most important markets, followed by Mexico, Brazil, Spain, and Argentina.
Furthermore, in 2019 domestic and international visitor spending in the Colombian economy directly contributed $59 billion to the Colombian GDP. In addition, during this period, the Colombian travel and tourism industry represented five percent of the total GDP, and this economic activity supported 1.2 million jobs.
Between 2010-2019, Colombia’s travel sector experienced steady growth. Thus, overnight stays increased by 39 percent during these ten years, while international visits expanded by 196 percent.
In 2020, total visitor spending saw a decline of over six billion dollars, representing a roughly 60 percent drop from 2019 levels. There was also a significant loss in the international market, with inbound spending falling by around 70 percent in 2020. The estimated six billion dollars reduction in visitors spent during 2020 put almost 750,000 jobs in the travel and tourism sector at risk.
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