Heralding an era of awakening in the job market post Covid-19, the largest provider of jobs for qualified and skilled manpower will be the hospitality, travel and tourism sectors which are on the path of recovery and as peoples across the planet are slowly getting rid of the fear of the coronavirus., according to a study.
"Definitely, with borders and travel getting eased out it will open the travel sector," says Saif al Rawahi of Sheraton Oman Hotel.
"As demand goes up the tourism sector will definitely be looking at creating employment opportunities. During the low business period we have been focusing on trainings and improving local manpower skill set around the new travel protocols."
The travel and hospitality industry, which is one of the leading employers in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region, is witnessing a major re-skilling drive, thanks to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic across the globe.
The study conducted by EFE (Education For Employment), a non-profit organisation, which is specialised in education, employment, youth development, and soft skill enrichment further suggests that the rapidly changing govt policies and shifts in travel behaviour during the pandemic will lead to a restructuring of the hospitality sector and that skilled youth will be the prime focus.
“Rapidly changing government policies to curb the impact of different variants of the coronavirus and shifts in people’s travel behavior during the pandemic have led to the restructuring of the hospitality sector,” said Jasmine Nahhas di Florio, Senior Vice President- Strategy, Partnerships and Communications at Education For Employment (EFE) which works to connect MENA’s youth to the world of work.
"The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that there has been a temporary drop in demand in the travel segment, which is recovering fast, but has provided an opportunity for re-skilling and up-skilling in order to meet the new sets of requirements in the industry,” said Jasmine.
In the wake of Covid-19 pandemic, the hospitality industry is fast adopting contactless technologies and processes, she added.
The report further indicated that some of the countries in the MENA region have achieved high vaccination rates and are slowly allowing travellers from less affected countries, while some have already opened tourist visas for all nationalities and countries.
"Giving more reasons for such an optimistic look is the fact that many countries in the region are looking to allow quarantine-free travel for those who are fully vaccinated against Covid-19 and such moves are bound to create more employment in the travel sector,” Jasmine said.
A survey conducted by the IATA (International Air Transport Association) among 4,700 respondents from 11 countries around the world revealed that 57 per cent of them expected to be travelling within two months of the pandemic’s containment, and 72 per cent will do so as soon as they can meet friends and family.
This is supported by the report by the United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) in 2018 which says that around 87 million tourists visited MENA countries and generated US$72 billion from the tourism sector.
“The travel industry needs to provide customers with tailor-made services that could ensure their health and value for money. Digital literacy and emotional intelligence skills will help travel industry workers stay relevant in this more dynamic and digitized market,” said Jasmine Nahhas di Florio.
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