05:32 p
Friday, January 27, 2023
Books – Youssef Afifi:
Ahmed Issa, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, said that the difference between a dream and a goal is the existence of a plan, and transforming the dream of attracting 30 million tourists annually into a strategic goal will depend on developing implementation plans that are broadly agreed upon in coordination with other relevant ministries.
The minister said, during the plenary session of the Senate, that Egypt did not get the tourism revenues it deserved; It deserves from 30 to 40 million tourists a year.
Eissa revealed that a study conducted on many countries of the world revealed that there are 272 million tourists from 12 countries who confirmed their readiness and desire for tourism in Egypt.
The minister pointed out the main axes of the strategy adopted by the state, including attracting 30 million tourists in the coming years, including encouraging and improving the tourism investment climate in Egypt, and increasing the number of hotel rooms.
The Minister of Tourism pointed out the importance of creating policies that stimulate investment, especially hotel investment, and increasing the number of hotel rooms in Egypt, calling for concerted efforts between the government and the private sector in the tourism sector to attract 30 million tourists during 2030, which will improve the current balance.
On Friday, January 20, 2023, Cairo International Airport received the first Chinese tourist group, coming from the Chinese city of Chengdu, for the first time since the emergence of the “Corona” pandemic, amid popular and official optimism to benefit from the large Chinese market, as it is one of the major markets exporting tourism in the world.
The government aims to increase tourism revenues during the next 3 years to $30 billion, to meet the gap in foreign exchange, and to exploit the country’s tourism potential to increase the sector’s revenues, which is one of the main sources of hard currency.
Tourism officials and experts believe that these figures and revenues can be achieved after decreasing the exchange rate of the Egyptian pound against the dollar and the subsequent increase in the competitiveness of Egyptian tourism, which led to a reduction in the cost of travel and accommodation for tourists.
Remove obstacles
Dr. Khaled Sharif, Assistant Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, said digital transformation, that reaching 30 million tourists annually, and achieving tourism revenues of $30 billion, requires removing all obstacles facing tourists, from arrival at the airport to the end of the trip.
Dr. Mostafa Madbouly, Prime Minister, had asked investors in the tourism sector to prepare a list of all requests and proposals for the advancement of the sector, saying: “If the bird’s milk would come in support of this sector … dream and we will fulfill dreams in support of this vital sector.”
Sherif explained to Masrawy that the obstacles are represented by the actions of some Egyptians, including: harassing workers at the airport, running after tourists to ride a taxi, and the tourist’s inability to use public transportation for fear of harassment, especially in archaeological sites and museums outside the scope of the place.
The government is seeking to conduct a comprehensive development of Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport, which would qualify it to receive more than 10 million tourists throughout the year.
The Assistant Minister of Tourism and Antiquities confirmed that the 30 billion pounds means about 200%, and that comes through the frequent visits of tourists, continuing: “But how is this done and there are some inconveniences that occur towards tourists?”
Sharif continued, “It is not impossible for us to reach this number, but on the condition that the whole country works on it, and the first need is the rule of law.”
The government launched, earlier, several initiatives to support tourism since the Corona pandemic, most notably the Central Bank’s initiative to postpone bank dues for tourism companies for a period of 3 years, reduce the price of aviation fuel for tourist trips to 15 cents, exemption from tax on tourist and hotel real estate, and postponing the payment of outstanding debts. government tourism facilities.
Facilitate entry
Kamel Abu Ali, head of the Red Sea Investors Association and the Al Baik Patros Hotel Group, revealed the conditions for reaching 30 million tourists during 2030, which the state recently announced.
Abu Ali told Masrawy that reaching this number requires several conditions, the most important of which are: making efforts, pumping investments and efficiency in attracting tourists, opening new markets, in addition to facilitating the entry and exit procedures for tourists at airports.
500 thousand rooms
Majed El-Gamal, President of the Taba Investors Association for Tourism Development, presented to Masrawy the optimal plan to reach 30 million tourists annually, in addition to $30 billion in 3 years, and includes four axes:
First – Increasing the number of operating hotel rooms to 500,000 by completing all projects under construction.
Second – Increasing the number of airports in Egypt and expanding Al-Qaim to reach an annual operating capacity in the range of 20 to 25 million tourists.
Third – good marketing targeting the tourist with the ability to spend high and not the tourist with low income.
Fourth – Encouraging and assisting investors to complete their projects and preserve the existing one by postponing any financial obligations they currently have, such as taxes, land installments, fees and the many fines currently imposed on them by state agencies, and dropping them completely from existing projects in new areas that have been suffering since 2011 until now from Many force majeure circumstances (such as the Taba / Nuweiba area).
Egypt’s cash reserves declined for the third month in a row, to record $33.143 billion at the end of last July.
