TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - International Monetary Fund (IMF) senior economist Serhan Cevik during the Indonesia G20 Presidency seminar on Wednesday, March 9, encouraged the recovery of the tourism sector to help support the global economy after being hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Why tourism? Because it is one of two main sectors in the world for the global economy,” said Cevik on March 9, Antaranews reported.

He noted the limited mobility during the pandemic as the most substantial aspect affecting the businesses of hotels, restaurants, retail, and transportation. Those are sectors that Cevik said contribute largely to the GDP of most countries in Asia Pacific and countries in the Western Hemisphere.

For example, 80 percent of Maldives’ income, directly and indirectly, comes from tourism. Meanwhile, China is at 60 percent, Cambodia with 40 percent, Thailand is 30 percent, and 20 percent for the Philippines.

"All these countries account for more than 10 percent of the global average of tourism-dependent countries," he added. "Covid-19 is truly a global phenomenon that caused the fall for international travel."

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