MAPUTO, July 20 — Mozambique’s Minister of Tourism, CarvalhoMuaria, recently revealed that last year the sector earned the country US$248 million (RM 791.74 million), an increase of seven per cent on 2011.
In addition, 2.2 million tourists entered the country in 2012, up from 2.012 million in the previous year.
The Minister was speaking during the opening of his ministry’s Coordination Council in the town of Metangula, in the northern province of Niassa.
The meeting is being held under the theme “Tourism: conserving natural resources to generate wealth and wellbeing”.
According to the Minister, the industry has also added capacity. In 2012, the number of beds increased to 40,800, up from 38,400 the year before. The number of people employed in the sector grew by a thousand to 43,000. Half of the workers are women.
Carvalho Muaria revealed that the country now has about six thousand tourism establishments, including accommodation, restaurants and bars, dance venues and travel agencies.
The Minister recognised that there is a need to improve statistics. He pointed out that a memorandum has been signed with the National Statistics Institute (INE) to create a better accounting system. This development is receiving the support of the World Trade Organisation.
The Coordinating Council closes today after assessing the sector’s performance and adopting strategies and targets for 2014. – Bernama
