JEDDAH: The Supreme Commission for Tourism and Antiquities has set new rules and regulations concerning hotel rating. It has also come up with strategies to boost investment and meet requirements for a skilled national labor force in the tourism industry through a sustained program of training.
The commission’s latest moves follow the Kingdom’s $38 billion tourism strategy approved by the Council of Ministers.
Sites in Madinah and Jeddah are set to be the first of up to 19 development projects aimed at attracting domestic tourists. The Kingdom is investing in resorts along the Red Sea coast to attract visitors and create jobs.
“The commission at a meeting held this week decided to create investment opportunities to boost domestic tourism, aside from discussing all related aspects with members of its various committees,” Ziyad Bin Mahfouz, president of Jeddah-based Elaf Group of Companies, who attended the meeting in Riyadh, told Arab News yesterday.
The meeting discussed strategies to boost the Kingdom’s tourism sector by a continuous program of exploring investment opportunities and providing employment to local youths.
Bin Mahfouz, whose company is a pioneering member of the Saudi hospitality and travel-related industries, said he shared his views with the investors. He recommended adopting a viable approach based on his vast industry experience and proposed enhanced coordination between the public and private sectors to help achieve the development plan of Prince Sultan bin Salman, head of the Supreme Commission for Tourism and Antiquities.
Bin Mahfouz said the Kingdom substantially eased visa controls and travel restrictions since 2006 to attract tourists. Industry leaders are contributing to the effort by offering budget accommodations to promote mass tourism. They are also eyeing European and Asian travelers in a bid to further diversify the tourist base.
