Azerbaijan targets 4 million foreign tourists per year

The State Tourism Agency is eyeing up to 4 million foreign tourists per year by 2027, said Chairman Fuad Naghiyev at the opening ceremony of the 19th Azerbaijan International Tourism and Travel Fair (AITF 2023) held at the Baku Expo Center, Report informs.

According to him, it is planned to increase the annual number of local tourists to 6 million in the next three years.

“Azerbaijan has great potential for the development of tourism, and this issue is a priority for us. Currently, our main goal is to restore the figure to the pre-pandemic level and to achieve greater development. Last year, 1.6 million tourists visited Azerbaijan, which is 50% of the indicator of 2019," he said.

The chairman also noted that in 2026, the gross domestic product (GDP) in the tourism and public catering sector will increase by 1.5 times compared to 2019, and a 20% annual growth is expected in this area.