Tourism’s contribution to GDP 7.2%

Chairman of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) Prince Sultan bin Salman has asked the ministers and officials in charge of tourism in the G20 to take immediate and serious steps to reduce the impact of the world economic crisis on tourism. "A strict timetable toward this end should be adopted," he told the fourth meeting of the ministers of tourism in Mexico on Wednesday.
Prince Sultan also called for the making of investment-encouraging laws, creation of lucrative opportunities, the finding of appropriate marketing channels, creation of new tourist packages and the promotion the skills and capabilities of all those involved in the tourism sector.
"The current situation in the world makes it imperative for all of us to agree on measures to mitigate the influence and the direct implications of these crises on the economies of our countries through creating lucrative tourism opportunities, finding marketing channels for them, encouraging the private sector through legislation and government investments," he said.
Prince Sultan said that the officials in charge of tourism should work closely and directly with the specialized federations and organizations such as the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) to find radical solutions to the problems facing tourism.
"Strategies should be made to promote tourism in a manner which is compatible with the current changes in the world. New tourism products should be initiated and manpower trained and further qualified," he said. The SCTA chairman noted that the meeting was being held at a critical political juncture which might adversely affect the various economic sectors including tourism. He said that in order for the countries of the world to avoid any new economic shrinkage, measures should be taken to normalize the situation, pave the way for sustainable development and restore economic and financial stability of the world.
The prince pointed out that tourism had become a constant item on the agenda of the meetings of the G20. "I do not think we have done enough to pinpoint the role of tourism in the world economy," he told the ministers. He referred to Italy and Germany where tourism plays a pivotal role in economy and said much can still be done to enable tourism to take its rightful place as an important stimulant to world economy.
Prince Sultan said tourism's contribution to the Kingdom's GDP in 2011 was more than 7.2 percent. "The sector employed 670,000 that year. Of them, more than 26 percent were Saudis. It is the second sector with the largest number of Saudis and constitute about 9.1 percent of the total manpower in the Kingdom," he said.
Prince Sultan noted that the demand for local tourism was on the rise with more than 40 million domestic flights last year. This made up 18.9 percent of the total number of flights. "Spending on local tourism increased 48 percent during 2011 over the previous year," he said. The prince quoted statistics to say that Saudi Arabia had 32 percent of Middle East tourist flights.
"During the past decades the Kingdom has achieved comprehensive development in all the political, economic, social and administrative fields depending mainly on its human resources and the ideal utilization of its wealth," he said.
He told the ministers that the SCTA has made an executive plan for the next three years to complete the tourist and heritage projects. "The commission has completely updated its comprehensive strategy to further promote national tourism," he said.