Qatar sets aside $20bn for tourism to 2013

Qatar, which is bidding for the 2022 soccer World Cup, has set aside $20 billion for tourism investments until 2013, a top official said, as the Gulf Arab state aims to diversify its economy away from energy.

Ahmed Abdullah al Nuaimi, chairman of state run Qatar Tourism Authority, said 40 new hotels with around 7,000 rooms would open in the coming year, mainly in the luxury segment.

The economy of Qatar, the world's top exporter of liquefied natural gas, is projected to grow 16 percent in 2010, with the state expecting a budget surplus of $2.67 billion. It has been pouring billions of dollars into infrastructure, real estate and education projects.

Nuaimi said: "Tourism was never looked at as a sector or industry that would be good for the country but now things have changed."

He added: "We are talking about $20 billion of investment in five years, including infrastructure, hotels, airports, and ports, that support tourism."

In the past three years, hotel rooms have jumped to around 8,500 from 2,700, and are to reach 15,000 by early 2011, said Nuaimi. Room numbers are projected to grow to 30,000 by the end of 2013, including hotels and furnished apartments.

The authority's strategy focuses on business, cultural, sports, and educational tourism.

He said: "We are not looking at mass tourism ... We are targeting the high end and business people."

Nuaimi added: "We are targeting an increase of 15 to 20 percent in visitors yearly."

Qatar is building a new Doha international airport, valued at $14.5 billion, scheduled to open at the end of 2012 with a capacity for 25 million passengers, expandable to 48 million upon completion of the last phase in 2015.

The small country has been pouring billions of dollars into infrastructure development to diversify the economy away from hydrocarbons, help propel itself on the international arena and become a transport hub between Europe and Asia.

Qatar is vying with nearby Abu Dhabi and Dubai to become the Gulf's transit hub with all three boosting airport capacity.

Nuaimi said: "We are trying to target the transit business, targeting 5 percent of that (transit traffic). Five percent will be 2.5 million people going through Doha by 2015," adding that around one million visitors had come to Doha in 2009.

The government has also been investing heavily in museums and other cultural initiatives, with plans to bring six museums in the next three to five years, including for modern art, photography, and sports, he said. (Reuters)