Tunisia tourism revenue down 54 percent after last year’s attacks

TUNIS - Reuters

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Tunisia’s Central Bank said March 31 tourism revenue in first two months in 2016 fell by 54 percent to 182 million dinars ($90.21 million) compared with the same period of 2015.

The decline follows two major attacks by Islamist militants last year that targeted the industry and killed dozens of foreigners.

The tourism revenue in 2015 as a whole fell by 35 percent to 2.35 billion dinars ($1.15 billion). 

Tunisia, for which foreign tourism is an important contributor to gross domestic product, has been under a state of emergency since last year’s attacks claimed by Islamic state.

Tourism industry accounts for some 7 percent of Tunisia’s GDP.

Thirty-eight people were killed by a gunman at a hotel in Sousse on the Mediterranean coast in June, three months after 21 tourists were killed by gunmen attacking the Bardo National Museum in the capital Tunis.