Albania’s tourism competitiveness climbs 19 steps to 71st

TIRANA, March 23 – Albania travel and tourism competitiveness climbed 19 steps to 71st in 2011, according to a recent report released by the World Economic Forum covering 139 countries.
Albania’s total score in the report was 4.01, sandwiched between Lebanon and the Dominican Republic leaving behind neighbouring Macedonia which ranked 76th.
Albania’s best perfuming indicators in the report were the affinity for travel and tourism, the top third in the world followed by safety and security 44th, policy rules and regulations 46th. The worst indicators were natural and cultural resources, which in fact in Albania are abundant but lack proper management, price competitiveness in the travel and tourism industry which ranked 94th as well as air and ground transport infrastructure. Prioritization of travel and industry ranked the world’s 55th.
“The countries with the top three assessments for the affinity for Travel & Tourism are Lebanon, Barbados, and Albania, with all three displaying great openness to foreign travelers and with their business communities also expressing their sense of the great value of tourism on offer in their countries,” says the report.
Albania’s travel and tourism (T&T) business environment and infrastructure ranked 91th while the T&T human, cultural and natural resources the world’s 61st.
Property rights continue hampering Albania’s competitiveness ranking 116th, Enforcement of environmental regulation also ranks Albania on the bottom of the table, the world’s 132th.
This year’s ranking was topped by Switzerland, followed by Germany and France
After a difficult period that recast much of the Travel & Tourism (T&T) industry’s landscape, the sector is slowly recovering from the economic downturn. In this context, the fourth edition of The Travel & Tourism Competitiveness report was released at a time when the industry is looking forward with cautious optimism and exploring new and innovative ways of ensuring successful development.
The ongoing tense political situation which escalated in the killing of 4 anti-government protestors on Jan. 21 in Tirana is another concern for the country’s developing industry, which says the country’s image has already been spoilt after violent acts aired all over the world. However, Albania’s placing as the top travel destination in 2011 by Lonely Planet Guide and sixth global destination by CNN experts are expected to bring positive effects this year.
Apart from the underdeveloped infrastructure, the high tax burden is another factor preventing the progress and competitiveness of the Albanian tourism industry. With three months to go before the new tourist season officially kicks off, the Albanian Tourism Association (ATA) has reiterated its perennial request for the review of the value added tax on this sector.
Albanian tourism has grown at a significant pace over the last few years, contributing over US$ 2.4 billion in 2009 to the Albanian economy, with expectations to grow by 4% in 2011 — based on statistics from the World Travel and Tourism Council. Over 200,000 Albanians are involved in tourism businesses and this number is expected to grow in 2010-11, despite the effects of the global crisis on the travel and tourism industry.