DOHA: Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) recently participated at “The 37th meeting of United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Commission for the Middle East”, held in Bahrain.
QTA Chairman, Eng Issa Al Mohannadi, who headed the Qatari delegation said: “As QTA steers Qatar to become a leading world-class hub for the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions’ sector (MICE), the country continues to garner strong momentum for quality and excellence in staging and developing sustainable events on the account of its first-rate infrastructure.
The 37th meeting of UNWTO Commission for the Middle East is a vital platform that fosters productive dialogue that is an essential requisite to devise proper forward-looking and tangible industry solutions. For us at QTA, this is a defining pillar for the development of solid, ethical and responsible fundamentals to ensure that our cultural assets are responsibly managed for tourism.”
Of the most important topics that have been raised during the meeting “Promoting tourism investments in the region” made roundtable discussion on visa facilitation in the region, and preparations for the 20th session of the General Assembly (Victoria Falls, Zambia/Zimbabwe, 24-29 August 2013).
UNWTO’s forecasting study “Tourism Towards 2030” reveals that growth in international tourism will continue at a moderate pace with the number of international tourist arrivals increasing to 43 million tourists a year on average and climbing to 1.8 billion tourists by 2030.
The Middle East region is expected to capture eight percent of the 1.8 billion with a steady growth of four million tourist arrivals per year.
Hassan Al Ibrahim, Strategy Advisor at QTA said, “We have lately shared our new planned strategy with the UNWTO which imparted its invaluable insights on best practices in tourism, with a particular focus on the industry’s long-term impact on our nation’s economy, human capital and environment. Qatar’s tourism is already one of the most dynamic landscaped owing to the relentless efforts of our government which are geared towards carving a solid presence for Qatar on the global tourism chart.”
The Peninsula
