Tourism earnings hit $1.3b

• Workers’ remittances rise by 3.5% to $1.9 b in first three months of 2018

​Earnings from tourism in March are estimated at $433 million, with cumulative earnings amounting to $1,313 million during the first quarter of 2018. 

Tourist arrivals increased by 24.1% in March as a result of higher numbers of tourists arriving from India, the United Kingdom and Germany in comparison to March 2017. Total tourist arrivals during the first quarter of 2018 at 707,924 were a 17% increase over the first quarter of 2017.

Workers’ remittances notably increased to $678 million in March, reversing the decline observed during February. Accordingly, workers’ remittances increased by 3.5% to $1,979 million during the first quarter of 2018 in comparison to the corresponding period of 2017.