Assessing the economic impact of tourism : a general equilibrium analysis for Turkey

Turkey is a leading country in the world tourism market. Tourism sector has grown rapidly over the last three decades. It is generally argued that tourism sector creates opportunities for employment and contributes to economic growth and international tourism revenues compensate part of the current account deficit. Acknowledging these, the government recently published a strategy paper for tourism. In this study, we analyze the tourism strategy of Turkey using a multisector dynamic applied CGE model with two tourism sectors. We run policy simulations to assess alternative tourism strategies and the potential impacts of exogenous shocks. We found that any incentive to tourism will have a positive impact on the economy but increasing investments has the largest impact.

Turkey

tourism

general equilibrium model

economic impact