Page 51 - CE Outlook Regions 2022

they did not agree with during the parliamentary discussions in
2021, arguing this will cripple the construction process.

However, another delay to a needed new construction law which has
already been in preparation for years will cause yet more uncertainty
for developers already frustrated with slow approval processes for
their projects.

3.1.6 Major Sectors

The COVID-19 crisis has hit the tourism sector in Czechia, like most
European countries, due to the lockdowns and strict restrictions the
country has faced in 2020 and 2021 in an effort to stem the
pandemic. The country has globally one of the worst numbers of
COVID-19 positive cases per 100,000 inhabitants.

According to the Association of Travel Agencies of the Czech
Republic, while in 2019 Czech travel agencies for inbound tourism
posted an annual turnover of around CZK6bn, in 2021 this figure
dropped to almost zero; given the current worse COVID-19 situation
in the country, this trend is expected to continue at least until the
spring of 2022. In summer 2022, travel agencies expect the tourism
sector to return to its pre-pandemic level (2019).

The capital city of Prague has been the most affected tourism region
in Czechia. According to the Czech Union of Tourism, the local
tourism sector has been facing losses of billions of euros, which are
further increasing due to the ongoing restriction measures. For
2022, the Prague government thus launched a new support
programme, mainly focused on increasing inbound tourism and
supporting congress tourism.

According to data published by TradingEconomics, at the end of
2021 GDP from the agriculture sector in Czechia is expected to
reach CZK32.4bn, followed by a growth to CZK33.6bn in 2022 and
further up to CZK34.4bn in 2023.

In 2021, the Czech Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) approved a support
programme for care, restoration and planting in the agriculture
sector, according to the amendment to the government regulation on
the binding rules for the provision of financial contributions for forest
management. For 2021 the ministry´s support amounted to
CZK1.7bn, followed by an increase of CZK3.3bn in 2022 and further
up to CZK4.6bn in 2023.

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