JEDDAH, 22 February 2005 — One of the world’s biggest hotel groups yesterday made its intentions clear about tackling the issue of Saudization in the hospitality sector.

Accor, the French international chain of hotels, has initiated and finalized a study to design and set up two hotel schools, in Jeddah and Riyadh. “We’re doing this to contribute effectively to the success of Saudization,” Gerard Pelisson founding co-chairman of Accor, told the Jeddah Economic Forum yesterday.

“The team that has worked on this study has shown enthusiasm and a high degree of professionalism in its efforts to drive this ambitious project, which will meet all the expectations of young Saudis as well as the Kingdom at large,” Pelisson said in his presentation on “Human capital: A strategic capital stake for sustainable development.”

He said that by 2015, the two schools would have trained more than 7,000 young Saudis with the guarantee of employment across the Kingdom’s hospitality industry.

The project, which is now under way, is being considered in cooperation with Prince Sultan ibn Salman, secretary-general of the Supreme Commission on Tourism and Abdulaziz Al-Sheikh, president of the Franco-Saudi Affairs Council. “Hotels and restaurants being a service sector, human resource is the No. 1 asset of our companies,” Pelisson said. Throughout the world, he said the authorities were just beginning to recognize the importance of the hospitality sector and “I must say that we’re currently being shown a certain amount of consideration, which was not the case in the past.”

That is why he tells countries and their authorities that if they want to expand tourism they should raise the necessary fund, find a good architect and build luxury hotels.

He criticized the tendency among promoters of such projects to only concentrate on five-star hotels rather than going in for two-, three-, and four-star properties, as there was a considerable demand for them.

He also pointed that the tourism sector cannot flourish by just building hotels. Other related activities should be upgraded and streamlined, like airline transport with affordable pricing and convenient frequencies, airport reception, tour operators, local transport, highways and cultural environment.

Speaking about Accor’s own development since its inception 40 years ago, he said: “Accor has grown with the travel and tourism industry that has progressed tremendously.” Today, the tourism industry encompasses travelers for religious, business, convention, leisure and health purposes. It has become a major foreign exchange earner for many countries.

France obviously enjoys a privileged position, as it is the country that receives the highest number of international tourists — more than 75 million every year. Last year, the number of tourists in the world rose by 10 percent, with a total of 760 million international arrivals, representing the strongest growth in the sector in 10 years, according to the post-tsunami conference held in Phuket, Thailand, by the World Tourism Organization. Its Secretary-General Francesco Frangialli was also present at the forum.

Asia and the Pacific region have reported a growth of 29 percent, followed by the Middle East with 20 percent. The World Trade Organization is predicting a growth of five to eight percent.

This means that the travel and tourism industry, which comprises airlines tour operators, travel agencies, hotels and restaurants, coach operators, and car rental agencies, is a service industry that will need a large number of well trained and professionally dedicated staff.

Forty years ago, he founded the group with Paul Dubrule. Today, Accor has 4,000 hotels and 160,000 employees in 140 countries. Professionalism, responsibility, trust, transparency and innovation being key factors for its success.