JEDDAH, 16 May — Makkah Governor Prince Abdul Majeed emphasized the importance of government support to Saudi-focused tourist exhibitions. In a statement to the press following the official opening of the Gulf 2001 International Expo for Tourism and Travel in Jeddah yesterday, Prince Abdul Majeed said the frequent holding of exhibitions helped in exchange of information and ideas between the host and guest countries. It also helps people find their destinations in the tourist map, while offering plenty of opportunities for the Kingdom’s tourist and travel organizers to familiarize themselves with the international expertise in the industry.
The Kingdom is set to make a giant leap in the tourism sector, particularly after the government started to issue tourist visas to foreigners. Prince Abdul Majeed was keen on opening the exhibition, which is being held at the Jeddah International Exhibition Center, despite his other engagements because of the role of exhibitions in promoting the industry and because “exhibitions are the best means for the exchange of expertise.”
The prince also emphasized the importance of Saudi companies presenting high standards achieved by them in the sector to the people of other countries. The prince also noted that the Jeddah city has been successfully organizing several tourist activities in the past several years to attract tourists.
The governor announced that this year’s six-week Jeddah summer festival, which will start on June 1, will focus on promoting domestic tourist industry.
Abdullah Maraa ibn Mahfouz, chairman of the exhibition committee in the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce and Industry and managing director of the Jeddah International Exhibition Company, which organized the Gulf 2001 Expo, said over 100 companies and organizations from various countries including Italy, Malaysia, Egypt, Morocco, Lebanon, Jordan, Cyprus, Pakistan, Australia, United States, Spain, India, Indonesia, Singapore and France are participating.
He said that a marked increase in the Saudi participation in the event is registered this year as about 20 percent of the participating companies in the expo are Saudi while last year it was only 17 percent.
Muhammad Boulaghlagh, general manager of Moroccan National Tourist Office said his country was participating in the expo for the second time with the aim of boosting tourism to Morocco, and also because this expo was significant in the tourism industry in the Arab world.
