The Gambian Tourist Value Chain and Prospects for Pro-Poor Tourism

Tourism in The Gambia: International ‘Best Practice’ in Poverty Reduction & Pro-Poor Growth Through Tourism
Draft Report (Friday 22 nd December 2006)
This implies gross margins of about 60% for the hotel sector and provides a clear
explanation for the extent of upgrading of existing hotel accommodation and the demand
for new build accommodation. The fact that most hotels surveyed were debt-free may
reflect their healthy viability – but it is also a reflection of the highly adverse local capital
market with annual interest rates exceeding 30%. The lack of access to capital – clearly
illustrated by wealthy individuals having to purchase hotels with cash – is obviously a
constraint to development for the bulk of the population with few financial assets. This is in
marked contrast with the evidence from Tunisia, where hoteliers are often highly geared to
the point that viability is threatened by debt service costs.
3.2 Demand
On 24 th December 1965, an aircraft carrying 112 landed in The Gambia from Stockholm,
Sweden. It was the first tourist charter to The Gambia and marked the beginning of an
industry that is an important force in the economy 24 . In the late 1960s and early 1970s
arrivals by sea and land were a significant share of the total tourism. However, with the
expansion of air travel from the early 1970s, an increasing proportion of total tourists
arrived in The Gambia at the international airport.
The Gambia is overwhelmingly a holiday destination with 99% of tourists stating ‘holiday’ as
their purpose of visit in the official statistics – with ‘business’, ‘conference’ and ‘visiting
friends and relations’ together making up the small number of other arrivals 25 . A detailed
survey of 2,000 tourists at Banjul Airport in 2004, as part of the Master Plan process,
confirmed the dominance of recreation as the purpose of visit – but suggested about 5% of
guests were travelling for business or visiting friends or relations (VFR).
Gambia is renown for its beaches and “winter sun” © Jonathan Mitchell
A survey of 2,000 tourists in hotels in 2004 indicated that 99% used air transport to reach
their destination, with road and sea arrivals together only constituting 1% of total arrivals.
Not only are visitors dependent upon air travel, but the dominance of organised packages is
clear. In the Airport survey, some 84% of all tourists are on package tours – a figure that
rises to 87% when visitors travelling for business and VFR are excluded 26 .
24 Ministry of Tourism & Culture (1995) National Policy for Tourism Development 1995 - 2000
25 Gambia Tourism Authority Statistics Monthly tourist arrivals bey purpose of visit Jan – Dec 2004
26 EMG (2005) The Gambia Tourism Development Master Plan Technical Report No.3 Visitor Survey at
Banjul Airport
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