Sherif Fathy, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, took part, at the invitation of the German Travel Association (DRV), in the association's main annual meeting, which coincides with its 75th anniversary, in the German capital, Berlin. Sherif Fathy was the only minister from outside Germany invited to attend the meeting.
The meeting was attended by a number of ministers and senior German government officials, representatives of German and international travel and tourism companies, and a number of specialized media outlets. Attendees included Anja Karliczek, Chair of the Tourism Committee of the German Parliament (Bundestag), and Johann Saathoff, Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.
During the meeting, the minister reviewed the development of tourism cooperation between Egypt and Germany, pointing to the development of tourism products that could suit German tourists and the inclusion of new types of tourism in the trips of German travelers and tourists, such as cultural and spiritual tourism, and visits to the North Coast region.
He also reviewed indicators of inbound tourist traffic to Egypt from various tourism markets, especially Germany, since the beginning of this year compared with the same period last year. He also spoke about the future of tourism worldwide, the diverse types of tourism in various countries around the world, and the developments the tourism industry is witnessing in facilitating the movement of tourists between different countries, as views, visions and proposals for developing the tourism industry were exchanged.
In a related context, the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities answered all the questions raised regarding the tourism industry in Egypt and the promotional policies for the Egyptian tourist destination, pointing to the most important source markets for tourism to Egypt and the opportunities for growth in arrivals from them.
Fathy also spoke about ongoing efforts to develop Egypt's tourism infrastructure and increase hotel capacity and the number of international airline seats to Egypt to keep pace with the rapid growth in global demand, pointing to the expansion of digital services at archaeological and tourist sites, which helps improve the tourist experience for visitors.
At the end of the meeting, the minister honored Norbert Fiebig, President of the German Travel Association (DRV), presenting him with a commemorative gift on the occasion of the end of his term as head of the association, which lasted 11 years, during which he made great efforts to develop tourist traffic and cooperation with Egypt in various fields of tourism.
Following his participation in the DRV meeting, Sherif Fathy, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, held two meetings with Anja Karliczek, Chair of the Tourism Committee of the German Bundestag, and Johann Saathoff, Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, to discuss ways to strengthen joint cooperation between the two countries in tourism and antiquities and to drive more tourist traffic from Germany to Egypt.
During the two meetings, the depth of the strong cooperation between Egypt and Germany was affirmed, particularly in tourism and antiquities, as well as the importance of working to strengthen and develop it. It was noted that the German market is one of the most important source markets for tourism to Egypt, and that there is close cooperation between the two sides in scientific research and archaeological excavations, with many German archaeological missions working at numerous Egyptian archaeological sites.
The meeting also stressed the importance of the tourism industry in providing direct and indirect job opportunities, in addition to discussing the importance of achieving sustainability in the tourism sector, with an agreement to study ways of cooperation and exchange of expertise with the German side in this field, especially in light of the global trend toward sustainable tourism.
Fathy also reviewed the developments in Egypt's tourism industry and inbound tourist traffic, especially from the German market, the ministry's vision and current strategy, the diverse assets of the Egyptian destination and its experienced human resources in tourism and antiquities, and how to benefit from them at the international level while focusing on developing their skills and raising their efficiency.
The minister pointed to the ministry's efforts to train these professionals and what has recently been achieved in cooperation with the private tourism sector, represented by the Egyptian Tourism Federation and the Chamber of Hotel Establishments, in terms of top-level training in various fields to qualify them to be utilized at the international level.
For their part, the Chair of the Tourism Committee of the German Bundestag and the Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development stressed the importance of tourism in fostering communication between peoples and spreading peace among nations, and the major role tourism plays in supporting national economies, noting that Egypt is one of the most important tourist destinations for German tourists, who are interested in Egyptian antiquities and are looking forward to the opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum, and expressed their desire to visit Egypt and the museum.
Sherif Fathy, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, invited the Chair of the Tourism Committee of the German Bundestag and the Parliamentary State Secretary at the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development to visit Egypt soon, as well as the Grand Egyptian Museum after its opening.
The meetings were attended by Dr. Mohamed El-Badri, Egypt's Ambassador to Germany; Minister Plenipotentiary Yomna Osman, Deputy Ambassador of Egypt to Germany; Rana Gohar, Advisor to the Minister for Communication and External Relations and General Supervisor of the General Department of International Relations and Agreements at the ministry; Ahmed Nabil, Assistant to the Minister for Aviation and Follow-up; and Mohamed Farag, Supervisor of the Egyptian Tourism Promotion Authority's office in Germany.
