The number of foreign tourists increased by 95%

In 2023, Namibia received more than 1.05 million foreign tourists, a significant increase of 95.4% from 593,601 in the previous year.

In 2023, the number of tourists traveling to Namibia increased to 863,872 from 461,027 in the previous year, an increase of 87.4%.

The figure brings Namibia’s tourist arrivals back to 54% of 2019, considered the last “normal” year for tourism before the pandemic.

Tourism Minister Pohamba Shifeta made the announcement yesterday when he released the 2023 Tourism Statistics Report.

The report shows that Namibia received 1.05 million foreign tourists last year, of which 81.9% were tourists, 14% were day trippers, 3.3% were returning residents and the remaining 0.7% were other tourists.

Hifeta said the significant growth showed that demand for Namibia as a tourist destination was steadily increasing.

“Moreover, although the pace of recovery is a little slow, it shows that the efforts of the government and the private sector are gradually bearing positive fruit. The gap is only 46%, and we hope that by the end of the tourist season in 2024, this gap will have narrowed significantly.”

South Africa leads

In 2023, Namibia’s main source markets for tourism are South Africa (349,729), Angola (112,336), Germany (79,989), Zambia (56,243) and Botswana (56,157).

The report shows that Namibia continues to welcome a large number of tourists, with the African market being the main driver of this growth, accounting for 71.8% of the total number of tourists.

The report states that in 2023, the number of tourists from overseas markets increased by 18.4% compared to 2022, which is quite a significant increase. These overseas tourists numbered 243,205, accounting for 28% of the total number of tourists that year.

“Despite global challenges, Namibia continues to remain attractive to international tourists, with the European market accounting for 21.5% of total visitors.”

However, it said the US market, while present, accounted for only 4% of total visitor arrivals, highlighting the potential opportunity for further growth and diversification in that market.

Come here to have a good time

In 2023, the main reason for tourists to visit Namibia was “vacation”, accounting for 49.1%. This was closely followed by 31.3% of tourists visiting relatives and friends.

In contrast, the number of tourists for business, transit and other purposes accounted for 15.8%, 3.6% and 0.2% respectively.

For leisure and holiday purposes, South Africa (160,621), Germany (71,172) and Angola (33,699) emerged as the main contributors.

However, in terms of business purposes, South Africa (80,568), Zambia (13,342) and Zimbabwe (9,653) topped the list.

When it comes to overseas visitors, Germany, the United States and the United Kingdom account for the largest share of holidaymakers. Meanwhile, in terms of business visits to Namibia, the United Kingdom, Germany and China are the biggest contributors.

challenge

Schifeta said the tourism industry must also acknowledge the challenges it currently faces. “The global economic situation, climate change and occasional security issues continue to impact our tourism industry.”

Looking ahead, their vision is to establish Namibia as a major tourist destination in sub-Saharan Africa and beyond. “Our goal is to further strengthen infrastructure, improve service quality, and continue to promote Namibia globally,” he noted.

He said strategies in this regard include expanding the country’s tourism portfolio to include niche markets such as sports tourism, medical tourism and convention tourism, promoting sustainable tourism practices to protect natural resources and cultural heritage, developing collaborations and leveraging technology to enhance the visitor experience – from seamless booking processes to virtual tours that showcase our destinations to the world.