The global diving tourism industry generates around twenty billion dollars per year, according to a study published in Cell Press Cell Reports Sustainability. These revenues help to boost local economies, employing local populations, and support marine conservation initiatives, whether through fundraising, or through greater public awareness.
“Diving is not a marginal pastime,” says the study’s lead author, Anna Schuhbauer, from the University of British Columbia. “It is a multi-billion-dollar pillar of the economy that can channel tourist dollars directly to coastal communities and to ocean protection.”
Recent studies have shown that ecotourism, activities in which participants observe and interact with marine organisms in a way that avoids harm to marine life, can play a significant role in marine conservation, particularly in Marine Protected Areas. In an effort to quantify this impact, Schuhbauer and her team decided to focus on one of the most popular ecotourism activities — diving.
“The global diving industry has grown steadily, but policymakers did not have up-to-date global estimates on the real value of the sector,” says Schuhbauer.
“Most previous work has been limited to local case studies or national snapshots, so their cumulative economic impact—and their potential contribution to ocean conservation—remained invisible. Our team set out to bridge this knowledge gap by producing the first global baseline of revenues and employment in diving tourism,” adds Schuhbauer.
Through surveys of dive operators worldwide, Schuhbauer and her team estimated the total global revenues generated by marine diving tourism, as well as its economic benefits for ocean conservation and local livelihoods. They estimated that 11,590 dive operators in 170 countries were involved in ecotourism and employed about 124,000 people, 80% of whom were local citizens.
They also found that the global annual revenues from about 8.9 to 13.6 million divers per year amounted to roughly 0.9 to 3.2 billion dollars per year, generating 8.5 to 20.4 billion in total. These figures underscore the global importance of diving as a core component of marine ecotourism, say the authors.
The researchers hope this information strengthens the case for community-led management of conservation initiatives, since most ecotourism groups are employed by local residents.
The researchers also note that the scope of their estimate includes only finances related to dive trips, equipment rental, diving certifications, and associated travel and accommodation, but does not include broader economic impacts from equipment manufacturing and sales or other revenue streams generated through international diving associations — all of which could be included in future surveys for a fuller understanding of the industry’s economic impact.
“These numbers are a conservative first analysis, providing a global view rather than a country-by-country, in-depth analysis, and should serve as guidance — and not dictate policy,” says Schuhbauer.
In the future, Schuhbauer and her team plan to create standardized monitoring programs to facilitate tracking revenues and visitor data and to quantify the impact on the supply chain, with particular emphasis on post-COVID-19 trends. “These advances will improve economic and conservation decision-making,” adds Schuhbauer.
