Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has reported that the pace of recovery of the island nation’s tourism sector slowed down during the second quarter of 2021.
Moreover, the central bank of Maldives attested that this was the result of the culmination of the tourism peak season coupled with the resurgence of Covid-19 positive cases in the country as well as in the South Asian region.
Earlier, in April 2021, the resurfacing of Covid-19 positive cases, with mounting reports of infection spread, lead towards a travel ban on visitors originating from South Asian countries in the following month of May 2021.
Furthermore, this travel ban attributed towards a sharp decline of tourist arrivals from India to Maldives, which had been a strong source market to the island nation.
Meanwhile, due to the persistence of Covid-19 pandemic and looming fears of its newer variants posing stronger threats and the existence of international travel restrictions, the international tourist arrivals to Maldives continue to remain below pre-pandemic levels.
According to the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) the international tourist arrivals declined by 85% during January until May 2021 in comparison with the corresponding period in 2019, and fell by 65% in comparison with the same period in 2020.
However, arrivals picked up moderately during May 2021 in comparison with the same month in 2019.
During the second quarter, tourist arrivals to Maldives increased significantly in comparison with the same period in 2020.