WTTC congratulates Saudi Arabia on formidable commitment to tourism growth
26-Sep-2017 The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) commends Saudi Arabia on their commitment to prioritising Travel & Tourism in the country, and congratulates HRH Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud on his honour received by UNWTO for his global leadership and contribution.
Gloria Guevara, President & CEO, WTTC, said: "The Saudi Arabian government has been a great example to the Travel & Tourism public sector in prioritising tourism growth in the country in order to generate further economic wealth and jobs as the country diversifies their income streams.
I especially want to congratulate President of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTH) HRH Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud for receiving the honour by UNWTO for his international leadership in innovating tourism in his Kingdom. The Prince is a great ally for the tourism sector and I am proud of his accomplishments, highlighting the Kingdom's cultural heritage as an important attraction for tourism.
Guevara added: "Travel & Tourism is a hugely important economic and social stimulator for countries' economies, and as it is such a resilient sector with global forecast growth of 4% per annum over the next decade, investing into the sector is a wise and safe thing to do."
KSA has grown more than 60% in tourism under Prince Sultan leadership. WTTC forecast a 6.4% growth of Travel & Tourism in Saudi Arabia which is well above the global average of 3.6% forecast growth for 2017, while employment figures are expected to rise by 3.7% in 2017."
Guevara met with HRH Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud at the UNWTO General Assembly in Chengdu earlier this month, where they discussed the country's tourism strategy and the push to expand Saudi Arabia private and public investments in this important sector.
Last year, the Saudi Arabian government announced the 'Saudi Vision 2030' which outlined huge increases in investment into the Travel & Tourism sector, including new tourism infrastructure on a 200-kilometer stretch of Red Sea coastline and theme parks to increase its product offer for leisure travellers. Travel & Tourism generated SAR244.6bn (USD65.2 billion) to Saudi Arabia's economy in GDP, which is 10.2% of GDP and supported 9.7% of total employment