About

Summary

This project was commissioned to put in place a sustainable data collection system to measure the economic impact of tourism in the Rwanda economy, and to enable more effective planning, policy making, marketing and monitoring of tourism.  To achieve this, a comprehensive review of existing tourism related statistical systems in Rwanda was required, as well as subsequent recommendations to improve these systems.

There were nine organisations in Rwanda involved in the collection and compilation of tourism statistics, including the National Institute of Statistics, Civil Aviation Authority, Office for Tourism (ORTPN), Rwandair, National Police and Central Bank.  Between these, and other bodies, there was a clear lack of uniformity in respect of data collection, limited application of international definitions of tourism terms and concepts, and a general lack of coordination with regard to the publication of data.

This study involved working with all of these organisations, with the overarching aim of creating a research and statistics unit within ORTPN, and to train staff accordingly to impart the skills for tracking and monitoring the tourism sector.

Our Approach

Our approach was to commence the study with meetings across Rwanda with all the organisations involved with tourism statistics, as both data collectors and users.  This provided a detailed account of the existing situation in the country.  A review was then made of the system of tourism statistics, clearly identifying all the gaps and constraints, and compiling an actionable strategy for improvements that would provide Rwanda with more robust data collection, storage, analysis and dissemination of tourism intelligence.

The next phase of the project was to implement many of the new recommendations, which included the update of the national entry/departure card for visitors and the installation of an online border immigration system for the compilation of tourism statistics.  It also involved the implementation of a new accommodation utilisation survey at all hotels with 10 rooms or more.

We developed a Microsoft Access-based national tourism database for compiling data and generating tables for publishing on websites and in annual statistics reports, and the training of staff to be able to maintain the system of tourism statistics and the database.  An estimation of the economic impact of tourism was also undertaken using a first experimental tourism satellite account (TSA) framework.

Outcome

The project established a well-structured and trained team within ORTPN (later to be absorbed into the Rwanda Development Board) that continued to develop the system of tourism statistics in Rwanda for several years.  The success of the project led to the commissioning of a follow-up study (also undertaken by Acorn, in 2011) that included the implementation of a number of surveys, an expansion of the tourism statistics database, and the development on a tourism satellite account.