Incomplete data on tourism in Armenia in Public TV Company report

On September 14, the Public TV Company broadcast a report on tourism in Armenia, which contains both correct, wrong, and incomplete data.

In particular, it is noted that Armenia ranks 79th out of 140 countries according to the Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Report published by the World Economic Forum. Compared to last year, Armenia has improved its position by 5 points. These claims are true.

The report also notes that Armenia ranks 31st in terms of business environment, 34th in terms of safety and security, and 30th in terms of price competitiveness. Two of these statements are correct, but in terms of safety and security, Armenia does not rank 34th, as the H1 report says, but 40th.

Head of the Tourism Committee Susanna Safaryan notes in the report that “the report contains only 14 components that are compared each year and the results affect overall competitiveness”. Safaryan’s statement is true. However, it the Public TV does not provide a complete account of the data in the report.

Thus, only components in terms of which Armenia ranks high (business environment, safety and security, price competitiveness) are mentioned, while there is no reference to those components where Armenia’s positions are medium or low.

For instance, the report does not indicate that Armenia’s infrastructure is rated as poor (2.8 out of 7 for roads and 2.4 for transport).

Below we present Armenia’s ranks and scores in terms of 14 components in the Tourism Competitiveness Report. Scores range from zero to seven, with seven being the highest score.

Hovhannes Nazaretyan