TEHRAN - All employees of accommodation centers across Iran are scheduled to be vaccinated against the novel coronavirus, the head of the Association of Iranian Hoteliers has announced. 

“There has been vaccination of hoteliers and hotel staffs for some time, but only a very small number have received both doses of the vaccine,” ISNA quoted Jamshid Hamzehzadeh as saying on Friday. 

“To vaccinate staffs of all accommodation centers, including eco-lodges, apartment hotels, and guest houses, as well as hotels, more coordination with the Ministry of Health is needed,” he added. 

Last June, the official announced that the outbreak of the coronavirus inflicted a loss of 60,000 billion rials (about $1.4 billion at the official exchange rate of 42,000 rials per dollar) on the Iranian hospitality industry in only four months. 

“Although hotels and accommodation centers have reopened, coronavirus’s damage to this section of the tourism industry is still going on,” he noted. 

COVID-19 causes damage to Iran tourism

Back in July ISNA reported that the tourism industry of the country has suffered a loss of some 320 trillion rials ($7.6 billion at the official exchange rate of 42,000 rials per dollar) since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic. 

The pandemic has also ruined more than 44,000 jobs in a once budding travel sector of the country, the report added. 

Experts believe accommodation centers suffered the most as a result of the outbreak of the coronavirus in Iran and its subsequent unemployment and financial losses. 

The following statistics cover the period between February 2020 and the spring of 2021: 

- The accommodation centers took some 280 trillion rials ($6.6 billion) hit from the virus, while over 21,000 workers in these centers have lost their jobs over the mentioned time. 

- Tourism agencies became the second most affected group in the tourism industry, with over 10 trillion rials ($238 million) of damage and more than 6,000 unemployed people since the outbreak.

Government care and support packages

Last October, the deputy tourism chief, Vali Teymouri, announced that a new support package was approved to pay loans to businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

Depending on the type and activity of the businesses, they could benefit from at least 160 million rials ($3,800 at the official rate of 42,000 rials) to nine billion rials ($214,000) of bank loans with a 12-percent interest rate, he said.

The loans would be allocated to tourist guides, travel agencies, tourism transport companies, tourism educational institutions, eco-lodges and traditional accommodations, hotels, apartment hotels, motels, and guesthouses as well as traditional accommodation centers, tourism complexes, and recreational centers, the official explained.

Teymouri in September pointed to the 1.3 million tourism workers in the country, who are facing several issues due to the coronavirus crisis and said “This number, in addition to their households, includes a significant population that makes a living through tourism, who are needed to be considered in ministry’s decisions.”

Back in August, Teymouri announced that the tourism ministry had approved a total budget of 4,920 billion rials (over $117 million) to support corona-affected tourism businesses, covering as much as 36,000 people working in the tourism sector.

ABU/AFM