The UAE wants tourism to contribute $123bn a year to the economy by 2031 said Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, UAE Vice President and Ruler of Dubai.
As reported by Arabian Business yesterday the UAE has introduced an ambitious UAE tourism strategy aimed at diversifying the country’s economy and attracting more visitors and investors.
In a tweet announcing the news Sheikh Mohammed said: “Today, we approved UAE’s Tourism Strategy 2031. UAE ranks among the top 10 global tourist destinations.
UAE tourism goals
“Our goal is to boost our competitiveness by attracting AED100 billion as additional tourism investments and welcome 40 million hotel guests in 2031.”
He added, “Tourism is key to diversifying our economy and boosting UAE’s global competitiveness. In the first quarter of 2022, our airports received 22 million passengers. Our goal is for the tourism sector’s contribution to be AED450 billion of GDP in 2031.”
Various federal and local tourism authorities, national airlines, and international institutions and companies will work together to enhance the unified tourism identity and support the country’s integrated and well-established tourism ecosystem, in order to provide a distinguished experience for tourists from all over the world.
Following declines brought on by the Covid pandemic, the UAE is witnessing returning confidence. This week Emirates airline yesterday announced record net earnings of $1.2bn (AED4.2b) in the first half of 2022. It also increased the number of its employees by 10 percent.
Meanwhile projections from Abu Dhabi’s five airports revealed that they are expected to welcome more than 15 million passengers by the end of 2022 amid the ongoing recovery of the travel sector.
More investment will be needed to meet the UAE Tourism Strategy target’s however. Sheikh Mohammed said a further $27bn would be needed.
The strategy includes 25 initiatives and policies to support the development of the tourism sector in the country. It is based on 4 key directions: strengthening the unified national tourism identity; developing and diversifying specialised tourism products; building tourism capabilities; encouraging the contribution of national cadres in the tourism sector; and increasing investments in all tourism sectors.
The strategy’s initiatives and directions will enhance the country’s efforts in providing an attractive and safe national tourism environment, pioneering and integrated tourism services, diverse and unique destinations, and a developed infrastructure for the tourism sector.
The strategy is expected to contribute to encouraging tourism investment in various related sectors, including travel, aviation and hospitality, as well as creating new investment opportunities, attracting more international companies to the local market, and developing tourism data and statistics.
The National Tourism Strategy 2031 comes in cooperation between the Ministry of Economy and various local and federal concerned entities and institutions, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security, the Central Bank, the General Civil Aviation Authority, the UAE airlines, the World Tourism Organisation, a number of international companies and the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre.
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