Tourism sector rebounds,set to hit K1tn revenue

Malawi’s tourism sector has registered strong recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic with its contribution to the economy now exceeding pre-pandemic levels, published Treasury data has shown. Data contained in the 2026 Malawi Annual Economic Report published by the Ministry of Finance, Economic Planning and Decentralisation show that the sector contributed K559.1 billion to the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019 before falling to K394.7 billion in 2020 due to travel restrictions and reduced activity. But the report shows that the industry rebounded to K478.1 billion in 2021 and by 2024, the sector’s contribution had surged to K865.2 billion, with projections indicating it will reach K1 trillion in 2025.

Employment has also recovered, rising from 600 000 jobs before the pandemic to 670 000 and is expected to support about 700 000 jobs in 2025, highlighting its resilience and renewed role in driving economic growth. In an interview on Sunday, Ministry of Industrialisation, Business, Trade and Tourism spokesperson Patrick Botha said the quick recovery demonstrates its resilience and the strength of the country’s domestic tourism. He attributed the growth to increased investment in the accommodation sector and other tourism sub-sectors.

Said Botha: “The operationalisation of the Malawi Tourism Authority also brings impetus to commercially oriented and efficient destination marketing and quality assurance, which will increase Malawi’s competitiveness and attractiveness as a tourist destination. Visitor exports rose significantly, constituting 13.6 percent of total exports in 2024, compared to just 2 percent in 2020. In real terms, visitor exports increased from K27.5 billion in 2020 to K54.2 billion in 2024, underscoring the sector’s regained competitiveness in the international market.

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Simultaneously, domestic tourism expenditure expanded substantially, rising from K323.8 billion in 2020 to K776.6 billion in 2024. An analysis of tourism expenditure patterns reveals that the majority of tourist spending during the period 2020 to 2024 was driven by business-related activities which accounted for an average of 70 percent of total tourism spending. Malawi Tourism Council executive director Memory Kamthunzi was yet to respond to our questionnaire on the sector’s recovery.

But earlier, she said despite challenges, the sector is witnessing growth across multiple sub-sectors, with increasing local investment and innovation. Treasury concedes that limited zoned land for tourism investment, underdeveloped tourism products and infrastructure deficiencies, limited marketing of the brand Malawi, limited access to finance for tourism enterprises and digitalisation and technology gaps are among some of the challenges affecting the sector. Tourism is strategically prioritised under the long-term development blueprint, Malawi 2063, in recognition of its transformative contribution to socioeconomic development, job creation and poverty reduction.

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