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128% growth in tourism and retail activities in the first quarter of 2022
September 27 2022
15:23 pm
Abu Dhabi: «The Gulf»
The UAE participates with the countries of the world in the celebration of World Tourism Day, which falls on September 27 of each year, with a track record of achievements and innovative initiatives that have strengthened its position on the map of tourism regionally and globally, and established its position as one of the most leading destinations for tourists from all over the world due to its diverse attractions. In the forefront of which comes the leading infrastructure, distinguished services and facilities, advanced hotel and tourist facilities, various tourist destinations and destinations, a rich and unique heritage, a safe and stable climate, and an open, tolerant, and uniquely inclusive society.
The UAE experience in the tourism sector was able to become an example of flexibility, diversity and continuous development within a short period, thanks to the support and directives of the wise leadership and its forward-looking vision for the future, which culminated in the country’s attracting more than 100 million visitors during the past five years, and promoted the sustainable growth of this vital sector. Which is one of the main tributaries of the new economic model of the state, especially as it succeeded in achieving growth rates that exceeded what was achieved in the period before the Covid-19 pandemic, and achieved revenues of 19 billion dirhams during the first half of 2022, and the number of hotel guests increased In the country, by 42% compared to 2021, with a total of 12 million guests, which reflects the strength and efficiency of the tourism product in the country.
Activities related to the tourism and retail sector, including accommodation services, hotels and restaurants, achieved a new leap to record the largest increase among other sectors contributing to supporting the country’s GDP, with an increase of 35.3% at constant prices and 128.8% at current prices during the first quarter of 2022 , according to the report of the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Center, which confirms the UAE’s leading position as a sustainable destination for travel and hospitality.
The celebration of World Tourism Day for this year comes under the slogan “Rethinking Tourism”, which is the approach that the country adopted early on in formulating its innovative strategies that promoted the growing prosperity of the tourism sector and made it one of the main pillars supporting the growth of the country’s GDP, in line with its ambitious development goals for fifty This was reflected in a series of pioneering initiatives that achieved a qualitative leap in the tourism sector.
The UAE is one of the first countries in the region to take the initiative to develop the tourism sector and pay great attention to it. The Dubai Shopping Festival was launched in 1996, and it is one of the oldest specialized tourism festivals in the region. Distinctive tourist destinations in the country were also developed and promoted in international forums and exhibitions on an ongoing basis, which led to an increase in the number of international visitors to the UAE and to raise its position on the map of the most distinguished tourist destinations. The country’s distinguished geographical location and the development of its infrastructure have contributed to the tourism sector.
sector support
The state continued its efforts to support the tourism sector in accordance with a clear strategy and innovative forward-looking plans that ensure the sustainability of the tourism sector and provide an attractive and supportive environment for innovative tourism projects. As an extension of the state’s visual media identity, to consolidate the UAE’s image as a regional and international tourist attraction.
In parallel with these efforts, the state has attached great importance to the internal tourism file, in its belief in its pivotal role in supporting the growth of the UAE tourism sector. The strategy of domestic tourism in the UAE, which aims to create an integrated tourism system at the state level to organize local Emirati tourism, in coordination with various local and federal bodies and institutions concerned with the tourism, heritage, culture and community entertainment sector, in order to double the volume of domestic tourism spending and create opportunities for the business sector in All regions of the country.
The “The Most Beautiful Winter in the World” campaign, launched by the UAE Government Media Office in cooperation with the Ministry of Economy and which falls under the umbrella of the internal tourism strategy, had a significant impact in advancing tourism development, as the first unified campaign for internal tourism at the level of the emirates in its first session achieved success. Unrivaled in encouraging domestic tourism in the country, and contributed to an increase in the number of hotel establishment guests by 17% compared to the same period in 2019, with a total of 950,000 hotel guests, in addition to achieving revenues for hotel establishments in the country with a total amount of one billion dirhams, while the second round of the campaign contributed to Revenues of hotel establishments increased to reach 1.5 billion dirhams, a growth rate of 50% over the first edition, while the number of local tourists reached 1.3 million, an increase of 36% over the first edition of the campaign.
The supportive and attractive tourism environment provided by the UAE reinforced the upward trend in the growth of the tourism sector, which succeeded in attracting 19 million hotel guests during 2021, with a growth of more than 29% compared to the number of guests in 2020, while hotel establishments achieved in 2021 revenues of 28 billion dirhams. , achieving a growth of up to 70% compared to 2020, and more than 75 million hotel nights were booked during 2021, an increase of 42% compared to 2020, while the hotel occupancy rate reached 67%, knowing that this percentage represents one of the highest rates achieved in destinations. The world’s leading tourist destination.
Expo Dubai
Expo 2020 Dubai, which is one of the largest international events organized in the Middle East and Africa region, also contributed to enhancing global confidence in the tourism sector in the UAE, following its success in attracting more than 24 million visitors over the course of six months. At the time, “Expo City Dubai”, scheduled to open in early October, will represent a global home for innovation, business and education, and a major contributor to the sustainability of the historical success of the exhibition.
In terms of attracting foreign investments in the tourism sector, the UAE ranked first regionally and seventh globally during the past five years, as it was able to attract regarding 87 new tourism projects, which constituted regarding 4% of the total announced projects during that period, according to international reports. The number of hotel establishments in the country increased during 2021 by 5% compared to its counterpart in 2020, to reach 1144 establishments. During the same comparison period, an increase in the number of hotel rooms was achieved by 8%, to reach 194,000 rooms in all emirates of the country.
Over the past five years, the UAE has accounted for 31% of the total foreign direct investment in tourism in the Middle East and North Africa, attracting regarding 25 billion dirhams through a group of tourism projects that contributed to creating more than 12,900, representing 29% of the market share within the region. According to a report by the FDI.
It is expected that the state of recovery in the tourism sector in the UAE will continue during the coming period, especially since the country has extensive and diversified investment plans to develop the sector in order to increase its contribution to supporting the gross domestic product, and to attract more than 40 million visitors to hotel establishments.
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