The hospitality, restaurant, and tourism sector was the hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. Tourism remains a marginalized sector, yet it possesses the potential to become a leading economic sector.
According to the Ministry of Economy, in 2020, activity in this sector contracted sharply due to the implementation of government measures to curb the spread of the disease. Following flight restrictions, a slowdown in international travel was recorded, along with the closure of hotels, restaurants, and other entertainment venues.
As a result, consolidated revenue fell by 52%, as did other activity tracking variables.
This decline was nevertheless contained by the good performance of hotels that had signed contracts with oil companies requiring their agents to observe a one-week quarantine before their departure to the production sites and upon their return, in accordance with the health protocol dedicated to their sector.
Heavily impacted by the pandemic, the international hotel sector consolidated the recovery observed since the fourth quarter of 2020, thanks to the easing of government measures against Covid-19. Indeed, the tourism sector's revenue in Gabon increased by 130.61%, reaching 4.87 billion FCFA.