Gambia Shakes Off Thomas Cook’s Collapse to Set Tourism Record

(Bloomberg) --

Gambia overcame the collapse of Thomas Cook Group Plc to attract a record number of visitors last year in a boost for the tiny African nation's gross domestic product.

Gambia, a $1-billion West African economy surrounded by Senegal aside from its access to the Atlantic Ocean, depends on tourism for nearly a third of its GDP. Tourist arrivals rose 13% to 235,788 visitors in 2019 from the year before, according to data from the Gambia Tourism Board.

The increase was fueled by a fourfold rise in visitors from Germany after tour operators added more flight connections between the two countries, Ida Jeng Njie, who heads the tourism board's international operations, said in an interview. The country also received more arrivals from the Netherlands.

“It's the reason why you do not see the big impact of Thomas Cook pulling out,” she said.

Thomas Cook typically flew in 45% of tourists that visited Gambia's white-sand beaches during a sixth-month peak season. The operator filed for bankruptcy in September, risking the recovery of the $1-billion economy that got underway after the ousting of former dictator Yahyah Jammeh in 2017.

Arrivals from the U.K. dropped by 16% in 2019 on the back of that exit, data shows.

While President Adama Barrow's government has agreed with TUI UK Ltd. to fill the gap left by Thomas Cook, the global outbreak of coronavirus could weigh on continued growth as travelers become reluctant to fly.

To contact the reporter on this story: Modou Joof in Johannesburg at mjoof@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Andre Janse van Vuuren at ajansevanvuu@bloomberg.net, Yinka Ibukun

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