“ Don’t tell my boss I’m in Mexico “, says, on condition of anonymity, a 31-year-old Spanish accountant, who has just landed in the seaside resort of Tulum, on the Riviera Maya (south-east). Local health measures, rather permissive in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic, attract foreigners who flee the restrictions in their own country. To the point that Mexico has risen from seventh to third in the world among the most popular nations in these times of coronavirus. The bet, which allows the tourism sector to better resist the crisis, nevertheless seems risky.
Teleworking was the lifeline for this employee of a large company in Barcelona: “ I couldn’t stand the curfew in my apartment anymore. “ It was the lack of travel restrictions and the desire for sun that prompted her to fly to Mexico at the end of January. The accountant works remotely from 3 am, jet lag obliges. “ From noon, it’s freedom at the beach! “
Like her, thousands of Europeans and Americans let themselves be seduced by the sandy beaches. “ It’s cyclical, tempers Miguel Torruco, the Minister of Tourism. The sector is not spared. But the crisis is less severe than elsewhere. “ The arrival of foreign tourists fell by 46% in 2020 (24 million international visitors), against a decline of 74% globally. The shortfall for the sector amounts to more than thirteen billion dollars (10.7 billion euros); turnover has declined by 55% in one year. A quarter of the four million direct jobs generated by the sector have been lost.
“We had no choice”
Non-coercive sanitary measures nevertheless limited the damage. No compulsory confinement, no fine, no Covid-19 tests imposed on foreigners … The government has played the card of flexibility, betting on a limitation of commercial activities according to a health alert code of four colors depending on the region. Objective: to save a key sector of the economy (it weighs 8.7% of gross domestic product) which represents the third source of foreign exchange after remittances from emigrants and oil. “ We had no choice, justifies Mr. Torruco. Six out of ten employees live day to day without being declared, especially in tourism. “ The Minister nevertheless specifies that “ strict health protocols are applied ” in hotels, restaurants and transport.
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