Situated on the southeastern periphery of Southeast Asia and endowed with unspoiled natural attractions, Timor-Leste is a destination for adventurous travellers. Leisure visitors injected roughly USD 23.2 million into the country’s economy in 2019, and capturing a larger share of Southeast Asia’s robust tourism market would make a significant contribution to national development.
Tourism’s Role in the Economy
Tourism is relatively labour-intensive, and with the right mix of products, services, and supporting infrastructure it could bring widespread economic benefits and create jobs for a burgeoning youth population. The National Tourism Policy targets 200,000 tourist visits per year by 2030 — a goal that would energise a petroleum-dependent economy. However, costly airfares, poor connectivity, and inadequate airports have kept this ambition out of reach.
Impact of COVID-19 on Aviation
With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, aviation operations were reduced to:
- Repatriation relief flights
- Emergency medical flights
- Deliveries of urgently needed medical supplies
The financial impact throughout the aviation industry has been severe. The International Civil Aviation Organization estimates that the world’s airlines lost between USD 213 billion and USD 257 billion in revenue since the beginning of the crisis. The broader picture includes:
- Airlines going out of business entirely
- Others being restructured or operating under severe financial strain
- Mass staff layoffs
- Fleet reductions and cancelled aircraft orders
- Elimination of less profitable routes
Timor-Leste’s Position and Recovery Strategy
The airlines that emerge from the global crisis will be smaller and focused on survival in a weak market. Timor-Leste, a small market on the periphery of foreign airline networks, must present operators with an attractive value proposition that fits their scaled-back plans.
A report by The Asia Foundation — Covid-19 and the Alignment of Timor-Leste’s Aviation and Tourism Strategies — argues that Timor-Leste must seek bilateral or regional travel agreements with countries that have achieved similar success in controlling the virus and can manage future outbreaks.
The Travel Bubble Opportunity
With just 30 recorded COVID-19 cases at the time of publication, Timor-Leste ranked among the most successful countries in managing the pandemic — positioning it as an ideal partner in a “travel bubble” arrangement.
Key considerations include:
- Australia accounted for almost 48% of inbound travellers to Timor-Leste in 2019 and is a natural low-risk partner
- Business communities in Australia and New Zealand were already working with airlines and aviation authorities to reopen travel between the two countries under a “Pacific travel bubble”
- The Cook Islands and Fiji were monitoring the progress of this Pacific travel bubble
- Timor-Leste was encouraged to begin preparations to join such an arrangement
Further Reading
- Full article — A Flight Path to Recovery for Tourism in Timor-Leste
- Full report — Covid-19 and the Alignment of Timor-Leste’s Aviation and Tourism Strategies
Source: The Asia Foundation — Gobie Rajalingam with Paul Hooper
Year: 2020