5 Apr 2007

Tourism figures on the rise in PNG

7:20 am on 5 April 2007

Papua New Guinea is seeing an increase in the number of overseas visitors entering the country.

The Tourism Promotion Authority reported that more positive growth had been reported for the months of January and February this year.

There were a total of 14,684 visitors then, compared to the same period last year, which is an increase of 54.3 per cent.

Of the total, 42 per cent were here on business while 23 per cent came on holiday, and others including education and employment made up 35 per cent of total arrivals.

Overall, the holiday segment showed a healthy growth of 95 per cent while business segment increased by 83 per cent compared to January 2006.

Meanwhile, the Post Courier reports the tourism sector is expecting to generate in excess of $US2 billion every year by 2010.