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ITB Berlin tailwinds seen for local tourism

Monday, February 20, 2023

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The local travel industry expects to catch tailwinds from this year’s edition of the major international trade fair Internationale Tourismusborse (ITB) Berlin, as the Ministry of Tourism reveals that 12 private Cambodian companies are set to attend the event early next month in the German capital.

Following a COVID-19 hiatus, ITB Berlin 2023 has been scheduled for March 7-9, and the aim of Cambodia’s participation is primarily to revitalise the local tourism sector, bringing in more international sightseers to the Kingdom of Wonder to enjoy a “cordial, safe, clean and green” environment, the ministry said in a February 18 statement.

As for the identities of the 12 local companies set to attend, the statement merely states that the figure includes travel agencies and firms behind hotels and other tourism investment projects.

Cambodia Association of Travel Agents (CATA) president Chhay Sivlin told The Post on February 19 that the annual “world-class event” will be watched by “millions around the world”, and see high levels of engagement, fuelled by every market’s determination to restore tourism post-COVID.

Taking into account the government’s moves towards “reopening” Cambodia to international tourism which formally began in end-2021, ITB Berlin 2023 will be an important platform to promote travel to the Kingdom to an international audience, she argued.

ITB Berlin, which may be considered to be the largest global tourism event, could help industry players reap a wealth of benefits, as it’ll be packed with travel agencies and businesses from all over the world that provide accommodation and leisurely outdoor travel options, along with a range of similar services, she said.

Although a host of Cambodian tourism-related businesses have expressed interest in registering for the event, only a few are able to attend due to the limited space available, Sivlin said, adding that the ministry will allocate booths for the companies as provided by the organisers.

Through the event, we expect an uptick in European tourists to Cambodia, especially Germans, from the current levels which still pale in comparison to pre-Covid times.

Tourism businesses can also strike partnerships with German entities, or those of other countries represented there, and market Cambodia to foreigners to attract more tourists, she added.

Pacific Asia Travel Association Cambodia Chapter chairman Thourn Sinan described ITB Berlin as one among three major annual European travel fairs of “great interest”, along with the UK’s WTM (World Travel Market) and Spain’s FITUR (International Tourism Trade Fair).

The ITB event will be very profitable for Cambodia seeing how many world-class tourism companies and operators will be participating, he said.

However, Sinan declined to provide an estimate of the number of European visitors to Cambodia this year, acknowledging that things could change drastically due to economic uncertainty in Europe and beyond, largely tied to the Russo-Ukrainian conflict.

The ministry statement noted that, during German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier to Cambodia on February 14-16, the two countries explored new economic strategies and ways to strengthen political and diplomatic ties.

The visit paves the way to reinforce bilateral relations, as well as to more opportunities for Cambodian goods to reach EU markets via Germany, such as garments, footwear, travel goods, bicycles and agricultural products, it asserted.

Customs (GDCE) statistics show that the Cambodian-German merchandise trade was to the tune of $1.247 billion last year – up by 19.28 per cent on-year – equivalent to 2.378 per cent of the Kingdom’s $52.425 billion in total international trade volume for 2022.

In 2022, Cambodian exports to and imports from Germany clocked in at $1.084 billion and $163.280 million, respectively, up 23.03 per cent and down 0.79 per cent year-on-year, expanding the Kingdom’s trade surplus with the largest European economy by 28.50 per cent on a yearly basis to $920.344 million.

Germany ranked as Cambodia’s sixth largest export market, and the Kingdom’s eighth top trading partner overall.

Meanwhile, tourism ministry statistics show that Cambodia welcomed 2.277 million international visitors in 2022, representing a 65.56 per cent drop from the record-breaking 6.611 million of 2019, albeit an increase by a factor of 11.59 over 2021.

Of the total international visitors, the majority had their purpose of visit marked as “holiday”, at 1.767 million, followed by “business” (431,000) and “others” (79,049) – compared to 5.035 million holiday, 1.371 million business and 204,326 other in 2019.

Although Germany had accounted for a 1.43 per cent share of all international visitors to the Kingdom in 2019, at 94,371 (89,488 holiday; 2,799 business; 2,084 other), that proportion dropped to 1.08 per cent last year, or 24,598 (21,167 holiday; 2,702 business; 729 other).

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