Neither Slovakia nor the Czech Republic are countries in which tourism could be viewed as the bedrock of their economies, reads a new analysis by UniCredit Bank. "With tourism accounting for just over 6 percent of Slovakia's GDP, the figure is the eighth lowest in the EU in this respect," said the bank's analyst Lubomír Koršňák. The EU average is 10 percent, according to figures by the World Travel & Tourism Council. "The low contribution of tourism to GDP in Slovakia and the Czech Republic boils down to their low competitiveness in the sector," said the analyst.
The World Economic Forum has also placed the two countries in the bottom half when it comes to how competitive their tourism industries are. In fact, among EU countries, only Romania did worse than Slovakia in this particular ranking. The Czech Republic took 19th spot. Four components make up the competitiveness index - a country's (un)favourable business and other conditions, policies, infrastructure and natural and cultural resources.
"While countries hold some sway over the first three areas, natural and cultural resources are more or less given and determine the natural potential of a country in tourism," said Koršňák. Interestingly, Slovakia was ranked as 12th best in the EU in terms of natural potential. By contrast, it took a lowly 115th place among all 136 countries under review in the business environment in tourism.
The areas in which Slovakia was found lacking primarily have to do with the how effective the country's legal framework is in resolving disputes, the length of procedures regarding construction permits and the effect of taxation on motivation to work. In addition, deficiencies were also detected in the importance, or lack of importance, that government policies attribute to tourism, including as regards public expenditures, how effectively the country is promoted, the development of air transport, the availability of a qualified labour force, and the flexibility of labour law.
