LONDON: Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb said a unified GCC visa would be a “significant milestone” for the industry, at the eighth meeting of Gulf Cooperation Council tourism ministers in Qatar on Monday.
During the meeting, ministers considered ways to strengthen collaboration to implement the tourist visa, Saudi Press Agency reported.
In his address to the meeting, Al-Khateeb said that the decision of the GCC Supreme Council showed the countries’ dedication to enhancing collaboration and fostering closer bonds in the tourism sector.
He said that the unification of tourist visas would greatly enhance the global appeal of Gulf countries as top tourist destinations.
Al-Khateeb commended the progress made in implementing the Gulf Tourism Strategy and emphasized the importance of efforts to activate the initiatives and programs within the strategy.
He said that the achievements of the GCC played a crucial role in boosting the tourism industry, allowing it to outperform other regions in recovering from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Kingdom in particular saw a 156 percent increase in tourist arrivals in 2023 compared to 2019, surpassing both regional and global recovery rates.
Al-Khateeb said such an accomplishment was only possible due to the high level of collaboration between the GCC countries in advancing the tourism sector.
He said that $800 billion would be invested by the Kingdom in cities and tourist destinations over the next decade as part of its Vision 2030 goals.
Al-Khateeb said that the travel and tourism sector’s contribution to the GDP of GCC countries in 2022 was only 7.8 percent, falling short of expectations. This showed the need to strive for a 10 percent contribution in the coming years, he said.
“The region is on the verge of more investments in major tourism projects, which requires strengthening joint Gulf tourism work, and activating initiatives, programs and activities that will maximize the benefit from attracting international tourists.
“This highlights the continued support for achieving more achievements and successes that the leaders of the GCC countries aspire to,” he said.
