Minister of Tourism Dr. Rania Al-Mashat met today with Ahmed bin Aqeel Al-Khateeb, President of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage. She opened the meeting by congratulating the Kingdom on the reforms it is carrying out and the development its tourism sector is witnessing, especially with Saudi Arabia's announcement that it is opening its doors to tourists from around the world and the launch of the electronic tourist visa on September 27.
This came during her participation in the annual conference of Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, the "Future Investment Initiative," held under the patronage of His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Saudi Council of Economic and Development Affairs, from October 29 to 31, 2019, in Riyadh.
The minister praised Saudi Arabia's efforts to develop its tourism sector, out of its belief in the sector's importance in supporting countries' economies, as tourism is one of the fastest-growing and most influential sectors in national economies. Tourism is a services-exporting sector and also one of the important sectors that contribute to providing foreign currency and job opportunities.
During the meeting, aspects of cooperation between the two countries in the field of tourism and ways to boost tourism between them were discussed. She stressed the depth of relations between the two countries in all fields, noting that Arab rapprochement opens broader horizons for cooperation among Arab countries, with positive repercussions and returns in stimulating intra-Arab tourism.
She said Egypt always welcomes its Arab brothers, noting that the Arab market is one of the most important source markets for tourism to Egypt, accounting for 30% of inbound tourism, with Saudi Arabia at the top of those markets.
For his part, Ahmed bin Aqeel Al-Khateeb stressed Egypt's place in the hearts of the Saudi people, noting Saudis' constant desire to visit Egypt and enjoy its tourism assets. He pointed to his country's desire to benefit from Egyptian expertise in promoting various tourism products such as cultural tourism and adventure tourism, which Saudi Arabia has recently begun to promote, adding that there is potential for cooperation to attract more tourists to the Arab region through joint tourism programs between Egypt and Saudi Arabia.
In this context, Al-Mashat explained that adventure tourism has recently become one of the fastest-growing types of tourism and the most popular among young people, and that long-distance hiking trails are among the types of adventure tourism and one aspect of sustainable tourism, as local communities take part in them, which helps provide job opportunities.
She said the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism promotes long-distance hiking trails in Egypt, including the Sinai Trail, at major international tourism exhibitions, noting that the travel magazine Wanderlust chose the Sinai Trail as the best natural trail in the world. She added that TIME magazine chose the "Red Sea Trail" as one of the top 100 places in the world to visit in 2019.
The meeting also discussed the possibility of cooperation between the two countries and the exchange of expertise in the field of sustainable tourism development, through preserving the environment and cultural heritage, strengthening cultural identity and developing communities, as well as in the field of tourism statistics.
At the end of the meeting, the Minister of Tourism presented the President of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage with a copy of the first follow-up report on the structural reform program for developing the tourism sector.
