Tourism Breaking News
Tourism ministers and diplomatic representatives from 20 Arab League nations gathered at the historic Al Ahsa, 2019 Arab City of Tourism, where the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) hosted the 22nd Annual Arab Tourism Ministers Meeting. The ministers and representatives discussed issues ranging from delivering a more unified approach to promoting tourism in the Arab world through to building sustainable tourism industries in the region.
His Excellency Ahmed Al Khateeb, President of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage, commented, “Tourism has a critical role to play across our region, not only in driving economic growth and in creating enriching career opportunities for local communities, but also in fostering new opportunities for cultural exchange and understanding. We look forward to exploring how the Arab League can work together to embrace the opportunities tourism presents for the benefit of our region.”
During the meeting, ministers discussed the important role of tourism in driving economic growth and creating inclusive job opportunities as a significant employer of women and young people. Also on the agenda was the importance of regional collaboration to harness the growing global trend of multi-destination tourism. Ministers discussed opportunities for countries to work together to build strong regional tourism identities that celebrate rich and diverse tourism offerings and highlight intra-regional air, land and sea connectivity. His Excellency, Ahmed Al Khateeb shared the Kingdom’s ambitious strategy, which aims to attract travellers from around the world to meet its targets of 100 million trips by 2030 and plans to triple its current GDP level from 3 per cent to 10 per cent, creating one million new jobs.
