ASIA – The Chinese province of Hainan is on track to become one of the world’s leading tourist resort destinations by 2012, according to a report, Hainan: Travel and Tourism Development Potential 2011-2021, released by the World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC).
The report by the global association on the economic and social contribution of travel and tourism claims that by 2021 tourism expenditure in Hainan will be roughly equivalent to that of Singapore today and the industry will support as many jobs as in Malaysia and Italy today.
In December 2009, China’s State Council issued a decree that Hainan in the South China Sea, the largest Special Economic Zone in China, was to be elevated into a world-class international tourist resort destination by 2020 and, according to the WTTC report, the Provincial Government is well on the way to reaching these goals.
Highlights of the report state:
- International tourism expenditure is expected to grow by 12.6 per cent every year over the 10-year period (2011-2021) to US$17.5bn
- In 2011, travel and tourism contributed 35 per cent of the province’s GDP. This is expected to rise to 46 per cent of GDP by 2021. If it were a country in its own right, this growth in travel and tourism’s total contribution to GDP would propel Hainan up the WTTC league table ranking from 54th in 2011 to 13th in 2021
- Hainan already outranks both Hong Kong and Macau in terms of the number of jobs supported by travel and tourism
- Nearly 550,000 jobs will be created directly by travel and tourism on the province over the coming decade
- Total visitor numbers in 2010 were almost 26m, representing a growth of 14 per cent per annum in the 15 years from 1995.
Speaking at the launch of the report, David Scowsill, WTTC President and CEO, said: “Hainan is on-track to achieve its aim of becoming a world-class international tourism destination by 2020. With rapid growth in employment, visitor expenditure and contribution to GDP, it is not surprising that this tropical island has already attracted the attention of many international hotel brands.
“The Government of Hainan Province recognises the potential economic and social contribution of travel and tourism and steps have been taken over the past three years to develop Hainan as a destination,” he added.
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