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International Area Studies Review
[ Article ]
International Area Studies Review - Vol. 29, No. 1, pp.61-73
ISSN: 2233-8659 (Print)
Print publication date 31 Mar 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.69473/iasr.2026.29.1.61

Determinants of International Tourist Arrivals in Uganda: A Gravity Approach

Jellie M. Awenu ; Jinhwan Oh*
Ph.D. Student, Graduate School of International Studies, Ewha Womans University, Republic of Korea
Ph.D. Professor, Graduate School of International Studies, Ewha Womans University, Republic of Korea

Correspondence to: *Email: joh@ewha.ac.kr

Abstract

Aiming to identify the key determinants of international tourist inflows and their influence on tourists flows to Uganda, this study applies the gravity model to a panel dataset of thirty-eight countries that sent tourists to Uganda between 2015 and 2023, where 2015-2019 represents the pre-COVID-19 pandemic period and 2020-2023 represents the post-COVID-19 pandemic period. The results of the analysis, which considered both economic and non-economic factors, indicate that higher GDP, shared borders, and the Sub-Saharan Africa variables have significant positive impacts on tourist flows in both periods, while GDP per capita, distance, direct flights, and visa restrictions negatively affect these inflows. The analysis also shows that Uganda attracts more tourists from neighboring and sub-Saharan African countries. These findings underscore the role of regional dynamics and highlight the importance of strengthening regional cooperation, developing targeted policies to invest in tourism infrastructure and markets for wealthier countries, improving transport connectivity, and easing of travel restrictions in enhancing Uganda’s competitiveness in global tourism as well as maximizing the sector’s contribution to the country’s economic development.

Keywords:

Tourist arrivals, Uganda, Panel data, Gravity model, Regional interactions

AI Acknowledgment

Generative AI or AI-assisted technologies were not used in any way to prepare, write, or complete essential authoring tasks in this manuscript.

Conflicting Interests

The author(s) declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Funding

The author(s) declare that there is no funding.

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