Assessment of the effects of COVID-19 on tourism enterprises in Arusha City Council, Tanzania.

Msangi, Eunice Michael (2023) Assessment of the effects of COVID-19 on tourism enterprises in Arusha City Council, Tanzania. Masters thesis, The Open University of Tanzania.

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Abstract

This study was conducted in Arusha City Council with the main purpose of assessing the effects of COVID-19 on tourism enterprises. Specifically, the study examined the affected tourism enterprises, the effects of COVID-19 and mitigation measures for overcoming the effects of COVID-19 on tourism enterprises. The study employed a cross-sectional study design and used both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The sample size of 277 respondents was drawn from the target population which constituted the employees of hotels, tour firms, curio shops, and cultural centres. Semi-structured interviews, questionnaires, direct observation and documentary literature reviews were data collection methods engaged in this study. The content analysis and Statistical Packages for Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 23 were used to analyze data. The study revealed that COVID-19 had devastating effects on hotels, tour firms, curio shops, cultural heritages and travel and aviation. The most profound effects of COVID-19 included the sudden loss of jobs, changes in lifestyle choices and preferences and operations below capacity. The significant mitigation measures that were used to facilitate the recovery of tourism enterprises included the government initiative of the Royal Tour documentary, the introduction of the COVID-19 vaccine and encouraging domestic tourism. The study recommended that tourism enterprises should diversify their activities, encourage digital marketing and initiate tourism product designs that can be tourists' friendly. The study further recommended that future studies should embark on challenges encountered by tourism enterprises during the initiation of mitigation measures for the recovery following the COVID-19 outbreak. Keywords: COVID-19, Tourism, Tourism enterprises, Arusha City Council

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