Arab News, Thursday, Feb 02, 2023 | Rajab 11, 1444
Saudi tourism sector spending surges 93% to hit $49bn in 2022, minister reveals
Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Arabia’s tourism spending surged 93
percent in 2022 to hit SR185 billion ($49 billion), up from SR95.6 billion in
2021, as the Kingdom continues to diversify its economy as part of Vision 2030.
The Minister of Tourism Ahmed bin Aqil Al-Khatib
revealed these details during his monthly meeting with citizens, the Saudi Press
Agency reported.
Reviewing the achievements made by the sector
during the year 2022, the minister said: "The direct contribution of the sector
in the gross domestic product amounted to 3.2 percent of the total target of 10
percent by 2030.”
Moreover, he noted that the number of jobs in 2022
reached 880,000, reflecting an increase of 15 percent when compared to the
previous year.
“The percentage of Saudi women in
the tourism sector also increased to reach 44 percent of the total workers in
the sector,” Al-Khatib added.
He also urged investors in the sector to adhere to
the new regulations set by the ministry in order to achieve a healthy
competitive environment that is both fair and attractive to investment.
The new regulations tackle developing the proper
procedures and requirements for practicing tourism activities while taking into
consideration the diversity of services provided and raising quality levels.
Additionally, the minister also stressed on the
need to further raise the level of services provided in the sector through
training and preparing the human cadre, which is the main factor in upgrading
the sector.
"The ministry is seeking to provide one million
jobs in the tourism sector with its various activities, which requires the
establishment of training institutes and the building and development of
training programs and services in the field of hospitality and tourism,”
Al-Khatib explained.
Furthermore, the ministry launched a joint
borrowing program with the banking sector to finance medium, small, and micro
enterprises in an attempt to enhance investments in the sector.
During 2022, the Ministry of Tourism also
implemented as many as 11 advertising campaigns to introduce and
market tourism in the Kingdom, reaching 35 countries.