Strategic foresight for tourism in Iraq after the coronavirus
Introduction
The novel coronavirus cases in Iraq as of March 23 had hit 266 with 23 deaths (al-Jaffal,2020:P2). The fast-growing number of new infections indicated a difficult situation that the country may face and could change the way citizens live. To contain the spread of the virus, the government put in place measures to salvage the lives and the economy of the country, which was staring at the damage. The steps taken by the government included closing roads between cities, the imposition of the curfew, and canceling all the religious tourism. To avoid contracting the covid-19, many Iraqis started wearing face masks and stayed at home rather than going to the job due to the fear that the country will suffer a more widespread outbreak(al-Jaffal,2020:P2). The measures taken by the government to prevent further spread was the fear that the health sector could be easily overwhelmed since there is an acute lack of medical staff, lack of equipment, and infrastructure. The worst fear by the government, which could lead to the spread of the coronavirus was the crowded places such as restaurants, cafes, and malls. The customer visits to these crowded places were already depressing before the government orders for the business to close by March 7. In the cities of Najaf and Karbala, the usual tourist crowded hotels where Shiite Muslims arrive to visit the Imam Ali shrine, the Hussein and Abbas shrine the corridors became silent. This scenario clearly explains the worst-hit tourism sector in Iraq due to the canceling of religious tourism, which is key to the overall tourism sector in Iraq. This paper seeks to unveil the plan for strategic foresight for tourism after the virus with the aim of reviving the once vibrant sector of tourism in Iraq.
Literature Review
The literature review provides an in-depth understanding of the impact of coronavirus on tourism marketing. The impact of the virus on tourism marketing is so important to assess the situation in order for the country to formulate a strategic foresight for the tourism sector after the end of the covid-19 pandemic. This review pays close attention to the past and present studies that have been conducted on the impact of the virus pandemic on the tourism sector in the country. The review will address the factors of dependent and independent variables. The independent variables are strategic, customer, market, and competitive foresight. The dependent variable will is tourism marketing. The independent variables affect the dependent variables. In this case, the aspects of the independent variables have been affected by the coronavirus pandemic, which has triggered the government action to take up measures to contain the virus, which in turn has altered the usual activities and way of life.
Discussion
Strategic foresight
Strategic oversight is the planning approach for the future. It is an action-oriented framework to reopen up the tourism sector after the coronavirus. It is aimed at ensuring returning the normalcy in its operations.
Customer foresight
Customer foresight is an essential element of tourism marketing and greatly dictates its success. Before the government had ordered for the closure of the business by March 7, the crowded places such as malls, restaurants, and cafes were depressing customer visits. The usually crowded tourist hotels in the cities in Najaf and Karbala, where Shiite Muslims visit the Shrines, became deserted as visitors feared for their lives (al-Jaffal,2020:P2). The reported case of a death of a student with the virus in the Najaf Province prompted the government to close down its religious shrine. The closure of the shrines was to pave the way for the sterilization operations of the major religious shrines. The restaurants in Najaf had to be closed due to the fear of the covid-19 outbreak and the banning of the Iranian tourists from entering Iraq by the government (“Virus Strikes Another Blow At Religious Tourism In Iraq – France 24”,2020:P2). In addition, due to the closure of hotels in Najaf, the Iraqis could no longer visit Najaf. The dire situation in the tourism sector, which depends heavily on the customer, was adversely affected. To revamp the sector after the virus requires planning, which restores the customer confidence to visits the tourist attraction cities.
Market foresight
The market foresight is an important factor in the tourism sector as it signifies the attractions sites. The Iraq government initiative to contain the disease by disinfecting the Holy City of Karbala affected religious tourism (“Holy City Karbala Disinfected As Coronavirus Hits Religious Tourism,” 2020:p1). For decades, the city of Karbala has attracted visitors both locally and internationally who come to visit the holy shrines. Hundreds of thousands of Shiite Muslim pilgrims visit the city of Karbala(al-Jaffal,2020:P2). Due to the new coronavirus, the city is almost empty of tourists. The closure of borders to the nationals of Iran by the authorities nearly made the nearby hotels for pilgrims deserted (“Virus Strikes Another Blow At Religious Tourism In Iraq – France 24”, 2020:P2). The effort to sterilize the city nearly halted to ground the city together with other cities with restaurants and cafes, which hosts the tourists. The market for tourist attraction has been nearly halted hence affecting the sector. After the coronavirus pandemic, the religious attractions sites and the hotels for pilgrims had to be disinfected and renovated more to bring back its former image.
Competitive foresight
Competitive foresight in the tourism sector is equally important as it identifies the key competitors in the sector and the level of competition. The outbreak of the coronavirus proved to be an equalizer across all the countries in the world with no country left affected. Before the virus, the hotels in the Najaf have been undergoing a real financial crisis for months (al-Jaffal, 2020:P2). The existing crisis was worsened by the outbreak of the covid -19 disease and the banning of the Iranian tourist into the country by the authorities. Iraq heavily relies on the income from oil; hence the spread of the coronavirus around the globe has a direct impact on its economy. Consequently, coupled with the decreased oil prices and financial crisis in the hotels, the competitive nature of the hotels and restaurants renders the tourism sector vulnerable as compared with other countries, which only struggle with the coronavirus. After the virus, the hotels, restaurants, and cafes have to deal with the internal challenges and the covid -19 to remain competitive.
Technology foresight
Technology is an important feature in tourism marketing as it reduces costs, improves services, enhances operational efficiency, and improve customer experience. Technological labor reduces labor costs and avoids customer service issues. Before the outbreak of the coronavirus, Iraq mostly imported goods from Iran, China, and Turkey that include furniture, clothing, food, and milk(al-Jaffal,2020:P2). These goods are also essential for the tourism sector in the country. With the coronavirus pandemic, which has restricted the movements of merchants to travel, have resorted to the internet as orders and payments are now made online. The halting of movement to and from China and Iran have the Iraqis the basic commodities, which also affects the tourism sector. In terms of the use of technology in the tourism sector in the operations remains unaffected, and after coronavirus pandemic, the sector can capitalize more on the opportunities of internet and technology, which favors the restrictions of movement due to online work activities.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the above strategic foresight for tourism after the coronavirus relies on the planning approach to revamp the key components that determine the operation and success of the sector. These components include the customer, market, competitive, and technological foresight. Coronavirus pandemic has altered every aspect of these components and presented a new way of life. As the medical experts and scientists grapple with the search for a vaccine for the disease, reopening of the tourism sector requires an action-oriented planning process due to the assessment of the components to ensure normalcy in the future. A critical in-depth analysis of the aspects that affect tourism marketing will provide vital information and understanding needed to rebuild the sector once the economy reopens after the coronavirus pandemic. The strategic foresight is a plan or approach to be taken in the sector to revive the once vibrant sector in the country.
Work cited
al-Jaffal, Omar. “Coronavirus Damages Iraqi Economy With Fall In Tourism, Oil Prices.” Al-Monitor, 2020, https://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2020/03/iraq-economy-coronavirus-tourism.html.
“Holy City Karbala Disinfected As Coronavirus Hits Religious Tourism.” Euronews, 2020, https://www.euronews.com/2020/03/27/iraq-s-holy-city-karbala-disinfected-as-coronavirus-hits-religious-tourism.
“Virus Strikes Another Blow At Religious Tourism In Iraq – France 24”. France 24, 2020, https://www.france24.com/en/20200227-virus-strikes-another-blow-at-religious-tourism-in-iraq.