The objective is to reach 1,000,000 tourists by 2028, says Viviane Dewa, the new Minister of Tourism, who was appointed at the end of August 2024. She is thus doubling the initial target of 500,000 tourists by 2023, set - pre-Covid - by President Rajoelina.
To date, between January and August 2024, Madagascar has received 126,421 visitors. And last year, the country received almost half a billion euros in tourism revenue from 259,850 visitors, an increase of almost 100% compared to 2022 (131,118 visitors), but still below the figure for 2019 (almost 350,000), according to the ministrys database.
Behind these figures, the island of Nosy Be, with its direct flights and cruise ship arrivals, is doing the best, says one tourism operator. On the other hand, towns at the end of an overland route, such as Mahajanga or Morondava [more than 12 hours drive, to travel around 600km, editors note], have seen a decline. Nationals were also more cautious about visiting their country.
In Antananarivo, the tourist season has been favourable for our three Radisson hotels, which attract both business and leisure guests, says Franois van Rens, general manager of the sites, owned by the local Talys group, which in 2022 made one of the biggest investments in recent decades - 25m - with the purchase of two hotels and the construction of a third, involving a total of 250 rooms. Our visitors come mainly from Europe, from France and Germany, adds the general manager.
To develop the sector, the first priority is to improve governance, in particular by adopting the Tourism Code, says Viviane Dewa. Tojo Lytah Razafimahefa, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Confdration du tourisme de Madagascar, the main grouping of tourism operators, also advocates attractive investment policies, as found in Namibia and Zambia, countries that have passed the one million tourist mark and the one billion dollars revenue milestone.
