Luanda - The improvement of services and the continuous transformation of natural resources into tourist products are keys to greater tourist attraction in the country, which could make Angola a major tourist destination, the head of the Marketing Department of the Tourism Promotion Institute (Infotur) Gaspar Barreto has said.
Speaking to ANGOP, Barreto emphasized the fact that once the transformation has taken place, the resources become products for sale and consequent revenue collection.
According to Barreto, Angola has great tourist potential, of which not even 10% is exploited, so it needs to transform the set of attractions, equipment and added tourist services.
He stressed that in the same way, the country must improve some aspects of organization linked, among other things, to the reception of tourists on arrival, from the airport to the hotel, as well as mobility issues with the alignment of prices and control of taxis.
“Angola has strong potential in tourism, which represents an exceptional opportunity to boost the ongoing process of diversifying the national economy”, he said, adding that currently the sector contributes less to Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Data provided by Infotur, for the period 2016 to 2022, points to a decrease in tourism's contribution to GDP from 1.3% to 0.01%.
Gaspar Barreto said he is convinced of better days ahead for the sector, highlighting the Angolan government's measure to exempt citizens of 98 countries from visa requirements, with the aim of simplifying and speeding up the process of obtaining tourist visas.
He emphasized that this measure would contribute to boosting tourism in Angola, as the bureaucracy involved in obtaining visas was limiting the number of tourists coming to the country.
Barreto spoke about the National Tourism Promotion Plan (PLANATUR), which aims to ensure direct investment on a large scale in order to facilitate tourist access to Angola and their internal mobility.
The expert was speaking on the occasion of the seventh edition of the International Tourism Exchange (BITUR), taking place from May 2 to 4, an initiative of the Ministry of Tourism, aimed at presenting the country's tourism potential.
ASS/VC/MRA/AMP
