Ethiopia’s Travel and Tourism economy grew by 48.6% in 2018 – the largest of any country in the world – according to the World Travel and Tourism Council’s (WTTC) annual review of the economic impact and social importance of the sector.

In 2018, Travel and Tourism contributed $7.4 billion to the country’s economy, an increase of $2.2 billion on 2017. The sector now represents 9.4% of Ethiopia’s total economy.

The Council’s research compares the Travel and Tourism sectors across 185 countries and shows that in 2018 in Ethiopia the sectors:

• Significantly outpaced the global growth rate of 3.9%, the African growth rate of 5.6%
• Supported 2.2 million jobs, or 8.3% total employment
• Was primarily driven by leisure travellers: 79% of the spending was generated by leisure visitors and 21% from business travellers
• Is strongly weighted towards international travel: 77% of spending came from international travellers and 23% from domestic

Commenting on the numbers, Gloria Guevara, WTTC President and CEO said:

“Ethiopia’s Travel and Tourism boom was one of the great success stories of 2018. This has been driven by the very strong performance of aviation in the country and the development of Addis Ababa as a dynamic and growing regional hub.”

“Travel and Tourism in Ethiopia now accounts for one in every $11 in the entire economy and one in 12 of all jobs. I would like to acknowledge the country’s commitment to the power of Travel and Tourism to drive economic growth, job creation and social enhancement.”