A CGE assessment of Singapore's tourism policies

The extraordinary performance of the Singapore tourism industry is attributed, among other factors, to the active tourism policies of the Singapore government, but the effectiveness of Singapore tourism policies has never been quantified. By building a CGE model for the Singapore economy with an emphasis on tourism and utilising the recently published Singapore input–output tables and tourism survey data, this study has gauged economic impact of Singapore inbound tourism and the effectiveness of Singapore tourism policies based on the simulated macroeconomic and sectoral effects. The modelling results show that, in terms of both real GDP and total tourism expenditure, tourism GST deduction is the most effective policy followed by the tourism activity subsidy policy. The tourism industry subsidy policy is proven to be the least effective. Since different tourism policies have different strengths and weaknesses, a balanced and focused approach to tourism policy is suggested for policy makers.

► This study has gauged the effectiveness of Singapore tourism policies. ► Tourism GST reduction is the most effective policy overall. ► The tourism industry subsidy policy is proven to be the least effective option. ► A balanced and focussed approach to tourism policy is suggested for policy makers.