COVID-19 Vaccine Spurs Expectations for Saudi Tourism Growth

Saudi men stand outside a tourist site in the Kingdom. (File photo: AFP)
Saudi men stand outside a tourist site in the Kingdom. (File photo: AFP)
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COVID-19 Vaccine Spurs Expectations for Saudi Tourism Growth

Saudi men stand outside a tourist site in the Kingdom. (File photo: AFP)
Saudi men stand outside a tourist site in the Kingdom. (File photo: AFP)

Expectations have increased for the growth of the Saudi tourism sector in 2021 with signs of a global economic recovery and the availability of the new COVID-19 vaccine.

Mohammad Al-Mujil, a businessman in the tourism sector and a former head of the Tourism Committee at the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Riyadh, expressed great optimism in the gradual revival of the economic activity in general and the fast growth of tourism inside and outside the Kingdom.

He also expected that the Saudi tourism sector would regain its vitality as of the third quarter of 2021.

“Expectations have risen in Saudi Arabia after the government made decisions to resume travel under compulsory conditions and the daily vaccination campaign which is moving at a rapid pace,” Mujil told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“Starting from the first quarter of 2021, we will witness the revival of business tourism and hotel activities, and the launch of attractive events, with expectations of increasing investments in stalled projects in light of the expected support from the Tourist Fund, as well as the emergence of mega plans such as the Red Sea project,” he added.

For his part, Majid Al-Hokair, former head of the Saudi National Tourism Committee at the Council of Chambers, told Asharq Al-Awsat that expectations for an increase in the growth of the Saudi tourism sector were high, “with the adoption of adequate policies and plans and the increasing hope in the positive effects of the vaccination campaign in the Kingdom and abroad.”

In this context, Economist Dr. Khaled Ramadan, head of the International Center for Strategic Studies, expected that the tourism sector would achieve a gradual recovery this year and would compensate for the losses incurred in 2020 as the result of the pandemic.

He stated that the new projects and development in the tourism sector in the Kingdom would create around one million job opportunities and increase the sector’s contribution to the GDP from 3.8 percent to 10 percent.



Syria Meeting Focused on Need for Credible Economic Data, IMF Chief Says

International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Kristalina Georgieva, speaks during a Press Briefing on "International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)" during the IMF/World Bank Group Spring Meetings at the IMF headquarters in Washington, DC, on April 25, 2025. (AFP)
International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Kristalina Georgieva, speaks during a Press Briefing on "International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)" during the IMF/World Bank Group Spring Meetings at the IMF headquarters in Washington, DC, on April 25, 2025. (AFP)
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Syria Meeting Focused on Need for Credible Economic Data, IMF Chief Says

International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Kristalina Georgieva, speaks during a Press Briefing on "International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)" during the IMF/World Bank Group Spring Meetings at the IMF headquarters in Washington, DC, on April 25, 2025. (AFP)
International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Kristalina Georgieva, speaks during a Press Briefing on "International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC)" during the IMF/World Bank Group Spring Meetings at the IMF headquarters in Washington, DC, on April 25, 2025. (AFP)

Officials from the International Monetary Fund, World Bank and key countries met with Syrian authorities this week on efforts to rebuild the war-torn country, emphasizing the need for credible data, IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said on Friday.

Georgieva said rebuilding Syria's central bank and expanding the country's capacity to generate revenue were other key issues addressed during the meeting that took place during the spring meetings of the IMF and World Bank.

Saudi Arabia's Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan, who chairs the International Monetary and Financial Committee, said he was grateful to the IMF and World Bank for stepping up support for Syria, noting others including Yemen, Palestine and Lebanon would also need help.