Tourism

With more than 1.4m people directly employed by the sector and 4m indirectly, tourism is a key income generator for the nation. In 2010 the sector accounted for 12% of GDP and brought in an estimated $12.5bn. Russia accounts for the most visitors to Egypt, with a total of 1.8m visitors travelling to the country in 2011. Another promising source market is the Gulf, whence an increasing number of tourists originate. Ranking Egypt 75th out of 139 countries in terms of travel and tourism competitiveness, the World Economic Forum’s list of areas in need of improvement include tourism, ground transport, and information and communications technology infrastructure. Despite the current difficult circumstances, the Ministry of Tourism is targeting 25m visitors by 2020. Areas for development include retirement tourism, adventure activities and attracting high-end tourists. This chapter contains an interview with Mounir Fakhri AbdelNour, Former Minister of Tourism.