ANALYZING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TOURISM REVENUES AND ECONOMIC GROWTH IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES

Abstract

This study examines the long-term relationship and causality direction between tourism revenues and economic growth in developing countries. In this context, annual data from eight countries, namely Brazil, Cuba, Georgia, Malaysia, Mexico, South Africa, Thailand and Turkey, between the years 2000-2023 were used. Within the scope of the analysis, Pedroni and Kao cointegration tests were applied to determine the long-term cointegration relationship. In addition, Dumitrescu and Hurlin panel causality test was used to determine the causality direction between the variables. The findings show that there is a long-term cointegration relationship between tourism revenues and economic growth in developing countries. The causality analysis results reveal that there is a unidirectional causality relationship from tourism revenues to economic growth. This finding shows that the tourism sector makes a significant contribution to the economic growth of the examined countries and that tourism should be considered as a strategic sector in terms of sustainable development policies. The study emphasizes the role of tourism on economic growth in developing countries and provides important information to policy makers and investors. The results obtained show that incentives for the tourism sector can support economic growth and draw attention to the necessity of sustainable tourism policies. In this context, supporting tourism with infrastructure investments, promotional activities and sustainable development strategies stands out as a critical factor in terms of economic growth.