
<p>By Shani Smit &#8211; Economist</p>



<p>Travel bans and containment measures around the world are having a devastating effect on the tourism sector in Mauritius, which was already experiencing sluggish growth in 2019. According to Statistics Mauritius, the total number of tourists visiting the island’s shores declined by 1.1% in 2019, while gross tourism earnings fell by 1.5% to Rs63.1bn.</p>



<p>The tourism industry as a whole is an essential component of the Mauritian economy and is estimated to have accounted for 18.8% of GDP and 19.1% of total employment in 2019.</p>



<p>In the first four months of 2020, tourism arrivals dropped by 33.9% y-o-y. Meanwhile, tourism earnings, which are not updated as regularly as tourist arrivals, are estimated to have fallen by 3.8% y-o-y in the first two months of 2020.</p>



<p>The United Nation’s World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) estimates that global travel could fall by 60% &#8211; 80% in 2020, which would suggest a drop of between 850 million and 1.1 billion in international tourists, the loss of $910bn &#8211; $1.2trn in export receipts from tourism, and as many as 120 million direct jobs in the tourism sector being at risk.</p>



<p>Prior to the pandemic, the government’s vision was to attain 1.6 million tourists by the end of 2020, to increase tourism earnings to the tune of Rs71bn and create 12,208 (compared to 41,792 jobs in 2017) additional direct jobs in the tourism sector.</p>



<p>Tourists visiting Mauritius are primarily European, accounting for about 60% of all tourists. European tourists are mainly French, British, and German, but the government has undertaken numerous initiatives to diversify its tourism market, with a particular focus on Asia, Oceania, and America.</p>



<p>While many countries have started to ease their lockdown measures, potential tourists will be anchored down by travel restrictions, tighter budgets, and health-related fears.</p>



<p>While the tourism sector has been the hardest hit, other economic sectors such as the textile, transportation, and manufacturing sectors are also facing the brunt of the economic slowdown.</p>



<p>As a result, unemployment figures have started to soar. According to the minister of finance, Mauritius could see unemployment increase by 150% to a total of 100,000 active non-employed workers; that is, 17.5% of the active population.</p>



<p>This would represent an increase of around 60,000 of unemployed persons across Mauritius, he said.</p>



<p>As part of the government’s fiscal support measures amid Covid-19, a wage support scheme and self-employed assistance scheme have been implemented.</p>



<p>The purpose of the two schemes is to cushion the socio-economic impact of Covid-19 by providing financial support to employees who have become unemployed on a temporary basis, as well as those who are employed in informal sectors or self-employed.</p>



<p>On April 17, the government extended the schemes until the end of April, allocating an additional Rs4.5bn in spending. Meanwhile, temporary amendments have been made to the Workers’ Rights Act and the Employment Relations Act under the Covid-19 Bill to protect the rights of workers and support businesses.</p>



<p>For more coverage on COVID-19 visit: <a href="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/covid-19/">https://www.cnbcafrica.com/covid-19/</a></p>


Op-Ed: Tourism sector in Mauritius devastated by COVID-19


<p>Statement by National Treasury (South Africa)</p>



<p>The Minister of Finance has announced the following exceptional tax measures as part of the fiscal package outlined by President Cyril Ramaphosa on 23 March 2020 in his speech on the Escalation of Measures to Combat COVID-19. These measures are over and above the tax proposals made in the 2020 Budget on 26 February 2020. The tax adjustments are made in light of the National State of Disaster and due to the significant and potentially lasting negative impacts on the economy from the spreading of the COVID-19 virus. There is a critical need for government interventions to assist with job retention and assist businesses that may be experiencing significant distress. These measures include:  </p>



<ul><li>The introduction of a tax subsidy to employers of up to R500 per month for the next four months for those private sector employees earning below R6,500 under the Employment Tax Incentive. This will help over 4 million workers;  </li><li>The South African Revenue Service to accelerate the payment of employment tax incentive reimbursements from twice a year to monthly to get cash into the hands of compliant employers as soon as possible; </li><li>Tax compliant businesses with a turnover of R50 million or less will be allowed to delay 20% of their employees’ tax liabilities over the next four months and a portion of their provisional corporate income tax payments without penalties or interest over the next six months. This intervention is expected to assist 75 000 small and medium term enterprises. </li></ul>



<p> <strong>For more coverage on COVID-19 visit:</strong>&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbcafrica.com/covid-19/">https://www.cnbcafrica.com/covid-19/</a> </p>



<p>National Treasury and SARS today publish draft explanatory notes detailing these COVID-19 tax measures as well as the circumstances under which they will apply. The measures will take effect from 1 April 2020. </p>



<p>The above measures will be given legal effect in terms of two bills to be tabled when Parliament re-convenes later this year for retrospective enactment. These bills are the Disaster Management Tax Relief Bill and the Disaster Management Tax Relief Administration Bill. The draft bills alongside their draft explanatory memorandum, will be published for public comment on the National Treasury and SARS websites by 1 April 2020.  </p>



<p>Together with the Commissioner of SARS, National Treasury will also be considering additional exceptional adjustments to assist with COVID-19 relief efforts and to the tax treatment of newly formed funds in this regard.  </p>



<p>The draft explanatory notes regarding the COVID-19 tax measures can be found on the National Treasury (www.treasury.gov.za) and SARS (www.sars.gov.za) websites. Comments on the draft explanatory notes can be made to 2020AnnexCProp@treasury.gov.za. </p>


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<p>Nigeria&#8217;s Minister of Finance has restated the government&#8217;s commitment to infrastructure development and assured Nigerians that the government will continue to invest about 1.3 trillion naira annually on capital projects.</p>


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<p>Zeal Akaraiwe, CEO of Graeme Blaque Advisory joins CNBC Africa to discuss Nigeria&#8217;s external borrowing plans.</p>


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<p>Theo Emuwa, a partner at Aelex joins CNBC Africa to discuss the challenges associated with Nigeria’s drive to ensure tax compliance.</p>


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minister of finance

Op-Ed: Tourism sector in Mauritius devastated by COVID-19

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