By: Nelson Alcantara: eTN

Tourism’s contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP) of Guatemala and the Dominican Republic is helping drive their economies, states a new Travel Trade Caribbean report. According to Travel Trade Caribbean, the Institute of Tourism (INGUAT) is estimating a total of 374,489 tourists entered Guatemala in the first four months of this year, for an increase of 25.7 percent as compared to the same period in 2003.

The report also states that Bank of Guatemala posted US$231.6 million worth of profits, representing an increase of 3.4 percent as compared to the same previous period, when the country registered 224 million dollars’ worth of hard currency income. The visitors included 181,888 from Central America, 124,575 from North America, 45,481 from Spain, 12,818 from South America and 9,727 from other parts of the world such as the Caribbean, the Near, Middle and Far East, and Australia.

Travel Trade Caribbean is also claiming that the Dominican Republic tourism sector has multiplied its contributions to the country’s economic development in the last 10 years, claims.

At present, tourism revenue represent 5.7 percent of the country’s GDP.

Dominican Republic, which received a major boost in tourism exposure as 2003’s Miss Universe Pageant venue, currently has tourism as its second best earner.

This Caribbean country garnered US$3,110,400,000 dollars in 2003, coming behind the duty free sector, which mobilized US$4,398,700,000.
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