International tourism, number of arrivals in Africa Western and Central
Africa Western and Central: International tourism, number of arrivals was 13.15 million in 2016. ▲ Rising
International tourism, number of arrivals in Africa Western and Central, 1995–2016
Source: Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism.
Analysis
The most recent figure for international tourism, number of arrivals in Africa Western and Central is 13.15 million, measured in 2016.
That represents a change of down 1.2% on the previous year and up 89.1% over ten years.
Over the whole period, international tourism, number of arrivals in Africa Western and Central peaked at 13.31 million in 2015 and was at its lowest, 2.67 million, in 1995.
Africa Western and Central ranks 45th of 46 groups on this measure, in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 22 years of available data.
International tourism, number of arrivals in Africa Western and Central, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 2.67 million | — |
| 1996 | 3.03 million | +13.3% |
| 1997 | 3.24 million | +7.1% |
| 1998 | 3.42 million | +5.5% |
| 1999 | 3.90 million | +13.9% |
| 2000 | 4.16 million | +6.8% |
| 2001 | 4.62 million | +10.9% |
| 2002 | 4.70 million | +1.8% |
| 2003 | 5.01 million | +6.7% |
| 2004 | 5.84 million | +16.5% |
| 2005 | 6.32 million | +8.2% |
| 2006 | 6.96 million | +10.0% |
| 2007 | 9.39 million | +35.0% |
| 2008 | 10.16 million | +8.2% |
| 2009 | 10.57 million | +4.1% |
| 2010 | 11.07 million | +4.7% |
| 2011 | 8.90 million | -19.6% |
| 2012 | 10.22 million | +14.8% |
| 2013 | 10.09 million | -1.3% |
| 2014 | 10.54 million | +4.5% |
| 2015 | 13.31 million | +26.2% |
| 2016 | 13.15 million | -1.2% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 3.25 million | 2.67 million | 3.90 million | 5 |
| 2000s | 6.77 million | 4.16 million | 10.57 million | 10 |
| 2010s | 11.04 million | 8.90 million | 13.31 million | 7 |
Countries ranked near Africa Western and Central
More private sector data for Africa Western and Central
- Merchandise trade 43.1% (2025)
- Food imports 15.3% (2023)
- Manufactures imports 54.3% (2023)
- Merchandise imports 163.34 billion current US$ (2025)
- Food exports 12.1% (2023)
- Manufactures exports 7.0% (2023)
- Merchandise exports 204.10 billion current US$ (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per capita 383.07 current US$ per person (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), per unit of GDP 0.2394 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Merchandise exports (current US$), annual growth rate 20.81 % change on previous year (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is international tourism, number of arrivals in Africa Western and Central?
- International tourism, number of arrivals in Africa Western and Central was 13.15 million in 2016, according to Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism.
- What is the highest international tourism, number of arrivals recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The highest recorded value was 13.31 million in 2015.
- What is the lowest international tourism, number of arrivals recorded in Africa Western and Central?
- The lowest recorded value was 2.67 million in 1995.
- How does Africa Western and Central rank for international tourism, number of arrivals?
- Africa Western and Central ranks 45th out of 46 groups with data for 2016.
- Is international tourism, number of arrivals rising or falling in Africa Western and Central?
- Over the last ten years it is up 89.1%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
- Where does this Africa Western and Central data come from?
- The figures come from Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files, UN Tourism, published as part of International tourism, number of arrivals. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 22 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
International inbound tourists (overnight visitors) are the number of tourists who travel to a country other than that in which they have their usual residence, but outside their usual environment, for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose in visiting is other than an activity remunerated from within the country visited. When data on number of tourists are not available, the number of visitors, which includes tourists, same-day visitors, cruise passengers, and crew members, is shown instead. Sources and collection methods for arrivals differ across countries. In some cases data are from border statistics (police, immigration, and the like) and supplemented by border surveys. In other cases data are from tourism accommodation establishments. For some countries number of arrivals is limited to arrivals by air and for others to arrivals staying in hotels. Some countries include arrivals of nationals residing abroad while others do not. Caution should thus be used in comparing arrivals across countries. The data on inbound tourists refer to the number of arrivals, not to the number of people traveling. Thus a person who makes several trips to a country during a given period is counted each time as a new arrival.