The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) estimated that the travel & tourism (T&T) industry would contribute directly $4.3bn to the Lebanese economy in 2012, equivalent to around 10% of GDP, and direct industry employment will reach 129,500, representing 9.5% of total employment in Lebanon this year.

It expected the sector’s direct contribution to the economy to grow by 4.5% in real terms in 2012 and its direct contribution to employment to rise by 3% this year. It added that, since T&T touches all sectors of the economy, its real direct and indirect impact is even greater, and forecast it will generate $15.5bn or 35.5% of overall economic activity in Lebanon in 2012, including 461,000 jobs that represent 33.8% of total employment in 2012. It expected the sector’s overall contribution to GDP to increase in real terms by 4.4% this year and its aggregate contribution to employment to grow by 2.8% in 2012.
The WTTC expected Lebanon to rank in 69th place globally in terms of the forecast growth of each of the sector’s total and direct contribution to GDP in 2012, in 67th place in terms of the forecast growth rate of the sector’s total contribution to employment, and in 157th place in terms of the industry’s direct contribution to employment in 2012.
The WTTC said that the T&T industry’s direct contribution to Lebanon’s economic activity will rise to LBP8,758.7bn in 2022 in constant 2011 prices, equivalent to 8.8% of GDP, while the broader T&T economy will contribute LBP32,206.5bn, or 32.4% of GDP by 2022. It projected the T&T economy in Lebanon to grow by 3.2% per year in real terms between 2012 and 2022 compared to 4.2% in the Middle East and 4.1% globally over the same period of time while the T&T direct industry will grow by 3% per year in real terms during the 2012-2022 period compared to a 4.1% real growth rate for each of the Middle East and the world. Lebanon ranks in 127th place worldwide in terms of the sector’s annualized growth rate over the 2012-22 period and in 135th place in terms of the expected growth of the sector’s direct contribution to GDP over the coming 10 years
Further, the WTTC projected the T&T direct industry jobs to reach 136,000 or 8.9% of total jobs in Lebanon by 2022 and forecast employment in the T&T economy to total 448,000 jobs overall, equivalent to 32% of total employment by 2022. In comparison, the
WTTC forecast direct industry employment in the Middle East to grow by 2.4% over the 2012-22 period and to account for 2.9% of total employment, while it forecast the T&T economy employment to grow by 2.5% and to account for 7.6% of total employment in the region. Lebanon ranks in 152nd place in terms of the expected growth of the sector’s total contribution to employment and in 157th place in terms of the industry’s direct contribution to employment over the coming 10 years.
Lebanon This Week – Byblos Bank