DOHA: Emboldened by the government’s plans to bolster the role of the private sector in the country’s economic development, Qatar Chamber (QC) now wants representation in the state-controlled tourism promotion agency.
The chamber said yesterday that if the government really wants to partner with it in promoting tourism, it must be provided with representation in Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA).
Sheikh Hamad bin Ahmed bin Abdullah Al Thani, Head of the Tourism Committee of the chamber, said the private sector’s involvement in promoting tourism is a must.
Sheikh Hamad represents the local travel and tourism trade in the chamber, which the representative body of the private sector. He said so many important sports events are held in the country. “And then, the 2022 FIFA World Cup is to be held here, so it would be a good idea to directly involve the private sector in tourism promotion.
“The private sector has the keenness to invest in the tourism sector but the state must provide it with incentives and facilities,” he told Al Sharq.
The Cabinet secretariat-general said in a report that more than 1.3 million tourists visited Qatar during April 2013-March 2014.
There were 113 hotels in the country and their revenue in 2013-14 was almost $1bn and hotel occupancy rate was 65 percent.
The report praised QTA and said it had begun classifying hotels. QTA has done a commendable job of promoting tourism in the country and presenting a good image of Qatar overseas as a desirable tourist destination, it said.
According to the report, QTA inspectors visit public parks regularly, especially those with entertainment facilities, and check health and safety conditions and report it to the authority for action if shortcomings are found.
At a meeting with businessmen on December 3 at Ritz-Carlton Doha, the Prime Minister H E Sheikh Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Al Thani had hinted that plans were afoot to promote tourism in a big way by easing tourist visa procedures.
He said more nationalities were being added to the list of beneficiaries of tourist visa schemes.
A draft law with recommendations forwarded by QTA was being studied by the Cabinet, he had said. The Peninsula
