MANAGING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BY TOURISM CONTRIBUTION: EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE

Tourism became one of the leading world industries thus provoking an interest among all countries, regardless the level of their economic development. Moreover, by increasing the number of incoming tourists, each country attempts to contribute to strengthening its economic growth. The paper addresses the economic impacts of tourism in Macedonia and makes an effort to assess its contribution to economic development. For that purpose, some commonly applied economic parameters are employed. The data set is observed in two sub-periods: 1991-2000 as a period just after the independence of Macedonia and 2001-2010 as a period extensive enough to observe the first tourism outcomes. The research generally is covered by comparative analyses based on available sources of secondary data. The outcomes point to modest contribution of tourism towards economic development, and underscores the necessity for managing actions and measures for enhancing current status