According to Colombia’s Ministry of Trade, Industry and Tourism, the number of tourists visiting the Andean nation has more than doubled during the presidency of Alvaro Uribe, reported Dinero.com on Monday.
Minister Luis Guillermo Plata said that between 2002 and 2009 the number of foreign visitors arriving in Colombia went from 1.1 million to 2.5 million, and that in the first trimester of 2010 tourism has increased by 12% compared to the end of last year.
Income generated from the industry increased by 115% between the beginning of Uribe’s first term in office and the end of 2009 – going from $1.237 billion to $2.663 billion – while money invested in the industry went from around $1 billion in 2002 to around $25 billion in 2010.
Plata attributed the increasing number of foreign visitors to the development of new flight routes traveling to Colombia, and to the strengthening of the country’s tourism infrastructure.
The minister also said that Colombia’s increased security and improving reputation in terms of violence were contributing factors to developments in the country’s tourism industry.