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Al-Ahram Weekly 4 -10 February 1999 Issue No. 415 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 4 -10 February 1999 Issue No. 415
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Book Fair Economy Opinion Culture Features Living Travel Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Upbeat about tourism
By Rehab SaadIn his annual meeting with the public at the Book Fair, Tourism Minister Mamdouh El-Beltagui said tourism to Egypt had begun to reach near-normal figures. The drop that followed the Luxor massacre of November 1997, in which 58 foreigners were killed, has steadied at 2.8 per cent since last October, compared to October 1997 figures.
"This achievement was made in only 10 months after the Luxor incident and not in two or three years as anticipated by most international experts," El-Beltagui said. "The number of tourists in 1998 is just 12 per cent less than what we achieved in the peak year 1997, meaning that Egypt has regained 87.2 per cent of the market in just one year."
El-Beltagui attributed the turnaround to the quick and firm management of the crisis by President Hosni Mubarak and the government. "On the day following the incident, President Mubarak visited the site and took a number of important decisions. He ordered the introduction of a new security system which was described by many international experts as effective," he said.
El-Beltagui added that another reason behind the recovery of tourism is the continuous efforts made by the Ministry of Tourism and private entrepreneurs who held constant contacts with the key countries that send their citizens to this country.
"Over 130 meetings were held with several travel agents, tour operators and foreign investors. There were also 120 meetings with foreign journalists and television stations in addition to 39 official meetings with tourism ministers and ambassadors of Germany, Japan, Switzerland, Britain and France, whose nationals made up the bulk of the Luxor killings. Moreover, the Ministry of Tourism took part in several international trade fairs and gatherings," El-Beltagui said. He said these efforts helped in re-assuring the Swiss and Japanese, the worst hit by the carnage. "In cooperation with the ministries of foreign affairs and the interior, we were able to alter their position which banned their citizens from travelling to Egypt," he said. "Swiss tour operators decided to operate some trips to the Red Sea despite the travel warning issued by their government. As for Japan, by the end of 1998, Tokyo had started to allow its citizens to travel to Egypt. With other countries, such as Spain and Britain, we managed to tone down the travel warnings issued by their governments."
El-Beltagui said that 1998 was also a year of other achievements. "We had the successful shopping and tourism month in July, attracting many tourists, particularly from Arab countries," he said. Egypt also hosted many international gatherings, including a conference on travel writers from the province of Catalonia held in May, a conference on German travel agents in November as well as a conference on French travel agents held last week in Luxor, El-Beltagui added.
He highlighted the fact that 1998 was a year of serious progress for the private sector in many infrastructure projects launched according to the BOT (build, operate, transfer) system. "It was also a year of preparations for the celebration of the third millennium and the revival of the route of the Holy Family," he said. For this reason, President Mubarak has directed that all the necessary restoration work along this route, especially in Old Cairo, be completed. This includes sites that are holy to all three monotheistic religions.
El-Beltagui pointed out that awareness of the importance of tourism should be promoted among the public. "Who said that agriculture and industry are the only sources of wealth in this country?" he asked. "Egypt has a rich culture and a rich civilisation. No other country in the world has what we have: antiquities from various eras, vast deserts, two seas and a great river. There is no other country that has all these gifts together. We have various types of tourism: cultural, sports, medical, conferences, safaris and cruises, to name some."
El-Beltagui noted that the slump in world oil prices had caused Egyptian losses worth $850 million. "The revenue from the Suez Canal will also drop because most of the vessels passing through it are oil tankers. Another result of the crisis is that major Gulf countries have declared they will follow a policy of austerity and will replace foreign with local labour. Thus, we will lose part of the remittances made by Egyptian expatriates," he said.
"Tourism is now the No. 1 hard currency earner. It is the only means of increasing national income, offering job opportunities to young people and fulfilling the national dream of breaking out of the narrow [Nile] Valley. Through tourism, we can turn 11,000 square kilometres of land into inhabited areas," El-Beltagui said.
