22% the contribution of tourism in the Lebanese economy for 2015

A survey by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) targeting 184 states in 24 regions across the world, ranked Lebanon in the 30th position in terms of direct and indirect contribution of its travel and tourism industry to the GDP in 2015. Entitled ‘The Economic Impact of the Travel and Tourism Industry for 2016’ which assesses the economic impact of the above sector in national economy and in the provision of jobs, pointed out that Lebanon’s contribution reached 22.1%, (US Dollars 9.9 billion), exceeding the global average rate of 9.8%. The direct contribution of the travel and tourism industry to the Gross National Product stood at 8.1%, (USD 3.6 billion) as compared to a global average rate of 3%. Regarding labor, the report indicated that the total number of jobs in the said sector was estimated at 326.8 thousand jobs in 2015, (tantamount to 21.3% of the labor market). The WTTC report also revealed that the total size of investments in the sector was estimated at USD 1.3 billion, representing 9.9% of total capital investments in the country. It also revealed that the overall spending by foreign tourists contributed to USD 6.9 billion, (51.9% of the total spending on tourism). 

(Al Diyar, May 30, 2016)