Positive outlook for Namibia’s tourism sector
Occupancy rates averaged 31.7% in February
2023 is off to a better start than 2021 and 2022 in terms of occupancy rates at nationwide hospitality establishments.
Namibia currently has a stand at the ITB Berlin tourism trade fair, considered the world’s largest tourism trade fair, with 19 exhibitors from Namibia who have joined the Namibian Tourism Board (NTB) in showcasing what Namibia has to offer to tourists. Exhibitors range from the Gondwana Collection, Fly Namibia, the O&L Group, N/a’an ku se Collection, Wilderness to Sense of Africa, Simonis Storm said.“In addition, with the completion of the American Embassy in Windhoek on the horizon, we anticipate a rise in international visitor arrivals, which presents an opportunity for the country's tourism sector to capitalize on the ensuing tourist peak season. We understand that about 400 permanent workers are to be recruited with a 70/30 split between Namibian and American workers according to an expert from government.”
2023 is off to a better start than 2021 and 2022 in terms of occupancy rates at nationwide hospitality establishments. While on a monthly basis, occupancy rates continue on a downward trend, since reaching a high of 61.3% in August 2022. Occupancy rates averaged 31.7% in February 2023, compared to 37.1% in January 2023 and 22.5% in February 2022, according to the Hospitality Association of Namibia (HAN) data. The data continues to follow its longer-term seasonal trend, where occupancy rates typically dip every January and remain below average until Namibia’s peak tourist season commences (May to September). Namibian travelers accounted for 55% of all guests at nationwide hospitality establishments, whereas only 31% of all guests were Namibian in February 2023. This significant decrease can be indicative of the general rise in living and travelling costs, leading to more households delaying or cancelling planned trips throughout the country, Simonis Storm pointed out.
As usual, most visitors came from Namibia’s main tourist source markets, with 37.4% of visitors coming from Germany, Switzerland and Austria, South Africa (5.4%), Benelux (4.5%) and France (3.5%). What is interesting to note is that the number of guests coming from the US and Canada has doubled from numbers recorded in February 2022.
Tourism remains a key growth driver of the local economy and has great potential for significant job creation at different skill levels. Indeed, in the latest Labour Force Survey available from 2018, the accommodation and food services sector was one of the 5 largest employers in Namibia. Ministry of Finance expects the hotels and restaurants sector to expand by 7.4% in 2022, 5.4% in 2023 and 3.7% in 2024 as per the latest budget documents.
However, it appears that the NTB will not be able to do much marketing activity in 2023 and it still has limited funding from government’s budget. Marketing initiatives will therefore have to come from the private sector in order to advertise Namibia as a welcoming and safe tourist destination to boost tourist inflows going forward, Simonis Storm said.