Phnom Penh (VNA) – Cambodia welcomed only 1,247,680 foreign arrivals in the first three quarter of this year, a fall of 74 percent year on year, as the COVID-19 pandemic is lingering on, according to the latest report by the country’s Ministry of Tourism.
The document further said in the period under review, the number of domestic tourists also halved to more than 7 million.
The ministry has projected that for the whole of this year, Cambodia will receive only 1.32 million foreign arrivals, marking a decrease of 80 percent compared to the figure last year, and 9 million domestic holiday makers or a fall of 20 percent.
It will take the country’s tourism sector from 3 to five years to return to normal, the ministry said.
An advisor to the Cambodian Chamber of Commerce said the only way to revive the sector is to wait for the pandemic to ease down so as to reform and restructure it, making it more attractive than before.
Cambodia’s health ministry on October 28 morning confirmed two more COVID-19 cases, bringing the national count to 290, including 283 recoveries and zero fatality./.
VNA