TAIPEI -- Amid the sluggish recovery of Taiwan's inbound tourism in the post-epidemic era and the soaring tourism deficit, people from various sectors in Taiwan, particularly the tourism industry, have called on local authorities to resume the entry of mainland travelers to the island as soon as possible.

According to data released by Taiwan's transport authorities on Monday, the island saw approximately 7.86 million inbound travelers last year, reaching only 60 percent of pre-epidemic levels and falling significantly short of the 10 million target set by the authorities.

Meanwhile, the number of outbound travelers in 2024 reached 16.85 million. The nearly nine-million-people gap between inbound and outbound tourists resulted in a trade deficit exceeding $20 billion for the industry, according to the data.

"While the increase of outbound trips made by Taiwan travelers is relevant to the huge tourism deficit last year, a major reason is that the entry of mainland visitors to Taiwan has yet to be resumed," said Ringo Lee, chairman of the Taipei-based High Quality of Travel Association.

Noting that mainland tourists constituted the bulk of Taiwan's inbound tourism revenue in the pre-epidemic era, Lee said it is of great importance to restore the lost part of the market as soon as possible.

In 2020, Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities banned mainland residents from visiting Taiwan under the pretext of COVID-19, and have yet to lift the ban on group tours to the mainland, much to the discontent of residents on both sides of the Strait. In June 2024, the DPP authorities further issued a level-orange alert for Taiwan travelers to the mainland.

Last month, the mainland announced that group tour services to Taiwan would soon resume for residents of Fujian province and Shanghai municipality -- two regions with strong ties to Taiwan-- after nearly five years of disruption.

However, in stark contrast to the mainland's friendly gesture, Taiwan authorities earlier this month cited unconvincing pretexts to block the resumption of cross-Strait tourism between the two localities of the mainland and Taiwan.

Interviewees from sectors in Taiwan, including tourism, transportation and retail, told Xinhua that Taiwan authorities have constantly paid lip service to promoting the development of tourism, and they went to great lengths to obstruct mainland tourists from visiting Taiwan.

The interviewees also urged Taiwan authorities to swiftly resume the entry of mainland tourists in line with public opinion.