MINSK, 8 March (BelTA) – According to preliminary estimates, Belarus’ export of tourism services in 2023 amounted to $200 million, Director of the Tourism Department of the Sports and Tourism Ministry Irina Voronovich told BelTA’s The Nation Speaks project.
“I think that the final figure will be a couple of million higher. We had certain targets that we were supposed to achieve in line with the state program,” said Irina Voronovich. Last year the sector posted growth over 2022, but we were a bit behind in terms of quantitative indicators. “There are objective reasons for this, and we talk about them on numerous occasions. People know this. The reasons have to do not only with the internal situation, but also with developments in the world, like limited flights,” the department director explained.
According to Irina Voronovich, Belarus’ tourism industry has not yet reached pre-pandemic levels, because 2019 was probably the most successful year for the industry. “The targets for the tourism industry set out in the state program were benchmarked against that year, therefore it is very difficult to hit these targets. In 2019 the export of tourism services exceeded $264 million,” she noted. “Nevertheless, there were positive dynamics in 2023, i.e. the industry is growing in comparison with previous years.”
