ICT as a factor of destination competitiveness: The case of the republics of former Yugoslavia

Abstract The purpose of this paper is to analyze the impact of the Information and communication technology (ICT) on the competitiveness of the republics of former Yugoslavia (Serbia, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Slovenia) as tourism destinations. This paper relies on the correlation analysis and panel regression method. Regression analysis has examined the impact of the ICT on the competitiveness of the republics of Former Yugoslavia (Serbia, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Slovenia) as tourism destinations. The destination competitiveness is measured by international tourist arrivals and international tourism receipts, while the ICT is measured by the ICT Development Index (IDI). The results indicate that the IDI use has a significant impact on the number of international tourist arrivals and an indirect positive impact on the international tourism receipts. The originality of the research lies in the fact there are no previous studies about the impact of ICT on the competitiveness of the republics of former Yugoslavia as tourism destinations. This study contributes to a better understanding of the impact of ICT on the competitiveness of a tourism destination by linking the IDI with tourist arrivals and tourism revenues.