TOURISM & COVID-19: This is the time for government and private sector to craft and implement a recovery master plan Uganda’s tourism sector could be at a Covid-19 driven stand-still, but Daudi Migereko, the Uganda Tourism Board (UTB) board chairman, says the temporary slowdown in activity provides a window for a government backed/supported but private sector driven modernization and recovery plan.

In Uganda, Tourism has been the leading foreign exchange earner, accounting for US$ 1.6 billion. The sector has been contributing approximately 8% of the GDP and supports 667,600 jobs directly and 1.6 million jobs indirectly. It is therefore without a doubt that the sector’s growth, has had a tremendous impact on our economy. Despite the vibrancy and success recorded in recent years, the Tourism sector has been hardest hit by the outbreak of Covid-19. The most lucrative tourist source markets are the epicenter of Covid-19. There has been a lockdown of States. Movement/travel embargo have become inevitable and thus imposed….