Ecuador vows to make tourism largest source of non-oil revenue

Minister of Tourism Sandra Naranjo said on Thursday that Ecuador is striving to make tourism the country's largest source of non-oil revenues.
The arrivals of foreign tourists have jumped 14 percent over the past six months to 749,410 from 655,605 in the same period of 2013, the official Andes news agency reported.
"Our goal is to reach a million and a half or so this year. Tourism represents 5.3 percent of the gross domestic product in Ecuador," Naranjo said.
Tourist arrivals reached over 1.3 million in 2013 as the number of tourists has grown steadily since 2009.
Tourism, which now generates 5 percent of jobs and is worth around 1.2 billion dollars a year, is ranked as the fourth largest source of non-oil revenues.
"Our long-term goal is to make tourism our largest source of non-oil revenues," said the minister.
Naranjo also said that major hotel investments would come in the near future. "The Ibis chain under French group Accor will build 10 new hotels in Ecuador. There will also be a hotel near the new airport in the capital city Quito and we have a lot of investors interested in unique destinations like Galapagos."
The Galapagos Islands, listed on the UNESCO World Heritage site in 1978, are home to exotic fauna and flora in the world.