WINDHOEK, April 28 (Xinhua) -- Recovery in Namibia's tourism sector is expected to be slow even after the COVID-19 pandemic ends, as travelers need to recover financially and to build confidence regarding their safety when traveling, an outlook released Tuesday said.
The Bank of Namibia (BoN), the central bank, in an outlook report said that the southwestern African nation's hotels and restaurants sector is expected to contract by 58 percent in 2020.
"The hotels and restaurants sector deal mostly with visitors from outside the country and it is therefore expected to be the most affected by COVID-19 induced travel restrictions," the central bank noted.
"With the imposition of travel restrictions, business activities of tour guides, for example, stopped instantly, while some accommodation establishments started to dig into their reserves to keep their lights on while ascertaining whether this will be a short-term or protracted problem," the BoN report said.
Meanwhile, Namibia's tourism sector is faced with cancellations for advance bookings and most establishments have to remain closed if the current global epidemic conditions remain in place for longer, the central bank concluded. Enditem
