In celebration of World Tourism Day on September 27, Kazakhstan’s Ministry of Tourism and Sports shared the key figures on the attracted investments and implemented projects, QazMonitor reports citing the Ministry’s press service.
From 2020 to 2022, Kazakhstan's tourism industry attracted $4 billion in investments. Last year alone, investments reached 513.3 billion tenge, and over 400 tourism-related facilities were built. In 2023, 115 investment projects worth 288 billion tenge are planned, which will create lodgings for 14,000 travelers and more than 1,500 permanent jobs.
In the first half of 2023, tax revenue from tourism totaled approximately 208 billion tenge, a 10.4% increase period-over-period compared to 2022.
Hotels in Kazakhstan achieved a revenue of 98.7 billion tenge in 1H 2023, reflecting a 45% growth period-over-period. The number of domestic tourists using accommodation services in January-July of this year reached 3.1 million people, marking an increase of 400,000 compared to the same period in 2022.
The number of foreign tourists staying in the country's accommodation facilities in the first half of this year reached 516,000, signifying a 1.8-fold PoP increase. On average, one international guest contributes $1,500 to Kazakhstan's economy.
Kazakhstan offers seven measures of government support for entrepreneurs in tourism: subsidizing the costs of tour operators for each foreign tourist, subsidizing the cost of air tickets to Kazakhstan for children (Kids Go Free program), reimbursement to entrepreneurs for part of the cost of purchasing ski equipment and vehicles (25%), construction of roadside service facilities, construction and renovation of tourist facilities (10%), and subsidies for the maintenance of sanitary and hygienic facilities (83,300 tenge per month).
As part of these measures, local administrations have approved 29 applications for partial reimbursement of costs totaling 480 million tenge. A cashback mechanism for tourists is also being developed, enabling Kazakhstan citizens to receive partial refunds for domestic travel.
Currently, Kazakhstan has 428 licenses to engage in tour operator activities. There are 35 licenses for outbound tourism, 34 in the sphere of domestic, inbound and outbound tourism, and 359 licenses in the sphere of domestic and inbound tourism.
Moreover, training new personnel for the industry is underway. The first batch of students of the International University of Tourism and Hospitality in Turkistan is set to graduate at the end of this academic year.
