Tag Archives: HE Khalid Jasim Al Midfa

As part of the ongoing efforts to meet Sharjah’s target of 10 million tourists by 2021, a group of government and private organisations from the emirate led by Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) travelled to Shanghai to join this year’s edition of  ITB China taking place from May 16 to May 18, 2018. China is a key tourism market for Sharjah, which has received a total of 120,356 hotel guests in 2017 from the world’s most populous nation. The delegates will comprise top officials from, Sharjah Airport Travel Agency, Air Arabia, Cozmo Travel, Golden Tulip Hotel Apartments, Hilton Hotel Sharjah, Ramada Hotel Sharjah, Sheraton Sharjah Beach Resort & Spa, and Trav Talk Middle East. “ITB China will play a key role in our initiatives to promote Sharjah as an ideal family-friendly destination worldwide, with China being one of our target international markets. At SCTDA, we are hoping to attract as many as 200,000 Chinese visitors by 2021 and we are already working particularly hard to make this happen. Joining the interactive ITB China is one of our strategies towards this end,” said HE Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, Chairman SCTDA. “Recently, the UAE announced granting Chinese visitors with visas on arrival – a move that will further boost our efforts. ITB China is an exceptional platform to create awareness of this privilege as well as capitalize on the enormous Chinese outbound travel market and further enhance the opportunity to strengthen our bilateral tourism cooperation with the country,”Al Midfa added.

Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development (SCTDA) has revealed at the Arabian Travel Market 2018 that Sharjah hotels recorded an occupancy growth rate of 70 per cent in 2017, indicating an exponentially rising number of regional and global travellers visiting the emirate. Commenting on the results, HE Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, Chairman, SCTDA, said, “Last year’s positive developments were the results of the initiatives to transform the emirate into one of the world’s leading family destinations in line with the directives of HH Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the UAE Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, and in support of Sharjah Tourism Vision 2021, which seeks to attract over 10 million visitors to Sharjah shores by 2021. Our intensive tourism campaigns hit its targets in 2017, further boosting the local tourism sector and enhancing its reputation at the local, regional, and global levels.” He added, “Our strong performance last year helped catapult Sharjah into the ranks of the most innovative and competitive cities in the world. Our continuing achievements and successes are proof of the emirate’s capability to provide an exceptional travel experience as well as high potential to attract tourists from around the world. Furthermore, Sharjah is famous among travellers who want to explore ancient monuments, with visitors from Russia, China, and different parts of the globe descending on the emirate to experience its beauty and rich traditions. All of these are helping drive our economic, social, cultural, and environmental growth.”

Sharjah’s hospitality sector revenues witnessed a remarkable 7.8 per cent increase during the first half of 2017 compared with the previous year, with its value reaching AED 372 million, the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA) announced. The announcement came as the emirate steadily positions itself as a destination of choice for local, regional, and international tourists. SCTDA reported a massive 70 per cent occupancy rate from January to June this year. The total number of guests for the first half of the year reached 885,000, representing a 3.5 per cent increase versus the same period in 2016. Saudi nationals occupied many of the local hotels’ lists of top guests. During the first two quarters of the year alone, hotels welcomed at least 72,000 Saudi travelers. HE Khalid Jasim Al Midfa, Chairman of SCTDA, said: “The remarkable expansion in the occupancy rate is the result of the Sharjah Government’s intensive efforts to attract local, regional, and global tourists as part of its comprehensive and ambitious socio-economic development plan. Our ultimate goal is to draw 10 million visitors a year by 2021, a grand accomplishment that will help accelerate the emirate’s unprecedented growth in the 21st century. To achieve this end, we will launch forward-thinking initiatives, bold projects and campaigns, as well as maximize all our assets and resources to place Sharjah, the UAE’s cultural capital, on the global tourism map and enhance its brand and profile on the international stage.” According to Al Midfa, part of the strategic plan for this year is to sustain the high tourist arrivals from Saudi Arabia. SCTDA has set into motion a number of road shows covering major cities in the KSA to …