Global Arab Network | Tunisia’s New Airport Beckons More Tourists

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Tunisia’s New Airport Beckons More Tourists

Global Arab Network - Robert Bailey

Tuesday, 13 October 2009 02:12

Tunisia’s new international airport at Enfidha is due to commence initial operations shortly. The project is a significant economic move for the country representing the largest private infrastructure project and the first public-private partnership airport concession undertaken in the Maghreb.

The airport has a 3,600 metre runway and 70,000 square metres terminal building and is one of the centrepieces of Tunisia’s economic development programme.

Enfidha is located in the heart of Tunisia’s tourism area, 80 kilometres south of Tunis, 48 kilometres north of Sousse and 40 kilometres south of Hammamet. In its initial phase the new airport is expected to handle more than 5 million passengers a year.

A Turkish Austrian Tepe-Akfen Vie consortium (TAV) has been awarded a 40-year concession million build-own-transfer (BOT) contract valued at $618 million to construct and manage Enfidha airport as well as manage Tunisia’s Monastir airport.

The long-term financial resources essential for the project’s success have been provided by development finance institutions including the International Finance Corporation, a World Bank affiliate, the African Development Bank, the European Investment Bank, the OPEC Fund for International Development and Proparco, a subsidiary of France’s development agency.

The opening of the new airport comes at a significant time for Tunisia’s tourism a industry that is facing increasing competition from other regional vacation destinations.

Niche Markets
In 2008, Tunisia received 7.1 million visitors representing a 4.2 per cent increase on the previous year’s number. The income from tourism totalled $1.5 billion which was six per cent up on 2007 according to the country’s Minister of Tourism Khelil Lajimi.

Travel and tourism accounts for about 7 per cent of Tunisia’s GDP and is the country’s largest foreign currency earner and provides jobs directly and indirectly for at least a quarter of the working population. Any drop in visitors has a disproportionately adverse effect on the economy because of this.

A big effort is now underway by the country’s travel and tourism industry to promote the country’s 3,000 year old heritage, sport, golf, spa and adventure packages as well as ecotourism to attract a new type of visitor as well as retain Tunisia’s traditional beach holiday market.

Mr Laajimi believes Tunisia will obtain more revenues from tourism by introducing new niches to products with added value. He is also keen to develop new attractions for the 2.5 million visitors each year from Libya and Algeria who rent accommodation and tend to stay longer for holidays and for private medical treatment.

Tunisia has 80 private clinics with a capacity of 2,500 beds with clinics specialising mainly in cosmetic procedures and crucially offering prices up to 60 per cent lower than Europe. Developers see opportunities for a much wider range of private treatments including cardiovascular surgery.

The sector will be boosted by completion of a major 400-bed private hospital in Tunis by Japan’s Tokushukai Medical Corporation and development of a “Health City” as part of the Bled Al Ward $10 billion real estate project planned by Abu Dhabi’s Al-Maabar Investments on a site at Ariana north of Tunis.

Golf is also being steadily developed and a national federation has been formed for the sport. The latest course at Gammarth opened a year ago. Ten first class internationally-designed golf courses are planned

Tunisia as well is likely to feature increasingly on the itinerary of Mediterranean cruise ships once new facilities at the ports of Bizerte and Sousse are undertaken and Tunis port’s La Goulette project is completed. This involves dedicated facilities constructed to accommodate cruise liners and the port’s present commercial traffic relocated to the port of Rades.

A major long term stimulus to visitor numbers is also likely to occur as a result of the wide ranging real estate developments under way and planned including the $160 million Baie de Gammarth venture.

A number of major-Gulf based real estate companies are developing projects in the country such as Emaar Properties, Sama Dubai and Marina al-Quso.

Open Skies
Increasing the availability of flights and lowering their cost through the introduction of an open skies policy announced earlier this year will make Tunisia a more attractive proposition for European property investors in particular. Morocco has illustrated how much new business can be generated through such a policy.

Tunisia offers scheduled flights to the UK with British Airways and national flag carrier Tunisair, as well as charter flights from Monarch and First Choice among others. Tunisia’s privately-owned Nouvelair and Karthago Airlines provide a mix of charter and scheduled flights.

The introduction of the Open Skies agreement will offer customers a greater choice of carrier including low-cost airlines and help attract business to areas of Tunisia close to the Sahara such as Touzer whose nearby desert scenery has been used in numerous movies including Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark and The English Patient.

Global Arab Network

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