Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Khaled el-Anani met yesterday with chairman of the Accor Group Sébastien Bazin.
During his meeting with Bazin and his accompanying delegation, the minister reviewed investment opportunities in the Egyptian tourism sector as well as expansion in the hotel capacity across the country.
El-Anani said his ministry is working hard to increase investment in Egyptian hotels and resorts nationwide, especially in new cities el-Alamein, Galala, the North Coast and the New Administrative Capital.
The minister said that the government is keen to develop tourism infrastructure in tourist cities, in addition to offering a package of incentives and facilities for local and foreign investors.
The ministry has drawn up plans for sustainable development and to increase the competitiveness of Egypt’s tourist destinations, el-Anani said.
The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities also plans to expand hotel capacity necessary to accommodate the target number of tourists by 2030.
This, in turn, will raise the efficiency of tourism infrastructure and encourage investment, he said.
The minister told the visiting French delegation that President Abdel Fattah El Sisi is keen to develop the tourism and antiquities sector, as evidenced by the re-opening of several archeological sites in the past period.
Anani said the ministry hopes to take major steps to develop the sector in 2022 after the outbreak of coronavirus affected the tourism sector in the past two years.
For his part, Bazin commended the rates of incoming tourism to Egypt as well as the increasing number of tourists heading to the Egyptian tourist destinations.
Tourism revenue, an important source of foreign currency for Egypt, plunged by 70 per cent in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Tourism usually accounts for up to 15 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product.
Accor is a French leading augmented hospitality hotel group offering unique experiences in more than 5100 hotels across 110 countries. The Group operates up to 35 fixed and floating hotel facilities in a number of Egyptian governorates.
It will open 22 new hotel facilities with a capacity of 9,500 rooms during the next period.
