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Xi Announces Listing Saudi Arabia as Tourist Destination for Chinese Groups

The announcement was made following Xi’s meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince
The announcement was made following Xi’s meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince
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Xi Announces Listing Saudi Arabia as Tourist Destination for Chinese Groups

The announcement was made following Xi’s meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince
The announcement was made following Xi’s meeting with the Saudi Crown Prince

China’s President Xi Jinping said his country listed Saudi Arabia as an outbound destination for Chinese tourist groups to expand interpersonal exchanges as well as cultural and popular exchanges.

The announcement was made following Xi’s meeting with Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister, in Riyadh on Thursday, China’s News Agency Xinhua reported.

Talks touched on opportunities to invest in the available resources in both countries to achieve their common interests.

Data published by the Saudi Ministry of Tourism indicates that about 20,000 Chinese tourists visited the Kingdom in 2022.

This figure is expected to increase in the future.

Tourism Minister Ahmed al-Khateeb had earlier stated in an interview with Xinhua that the Kingdom seeks to attract Chinese tourists by ensuring they can obtain their tourism visas easily.

The Riyadh Airports Company has announced starting work on standards to facilitate the entry of Chinese tourists, ensuring their travel experience is easier, and overcoming language barriers by providing them with all the needed appropriate services, including payment systems that are compatible with these in China, the minister explained.

Khateeb said that his ministry also seeks to employ Chinese-speaking tour guides, adding that the Kingdom has inked an agreement with China to teach the Chinese language in its school curricula.

Khatib further pointed to the agreement signed between the Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) and the Shanghai-based global payment services provider UnionPay International (UPI), which would allow it to promote the Kingdom as a UnionPay-friendly destination for the global Chinese community.

The Ministry seeks to spend up to SAR264 billion on tourism in 2023, and to attract 3.1 million tourists.

It also targets amounting the contribution to the gross domestic product by about 5.2%, providing 834,000 jobs in the sector, and creating new job paths and professions with approximately 1.6 million direct and indirect jobs.

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Saudi National Center for Wildlife Development to Assess Crown-of-Thorns Starfish Outbreak

Saudi National Center for Wildlife Development to Assess Crown-of-Thorns Starfish Outbreak
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Saudi National Center for Wildlife Development to Assess Crown-of-Thorns Starfish Outbreak

Saudi National Center for Wildlife Development to Assess Crown-of-Thorns Starfish Outbreak

Saudi Arabia’s National Center for Wildlife (NCW) initiated a comprehensive survey plan to gather essential data on Crown-of-Thorns Starfish (COTS) populations in key areas of the Red Sea.

The data will be used to promptly address outbreaks of the organism, thereby safeguarding biodiversity and the health of coral reefs.

The effort is part of NCW's role as the national authority and point of reference for establishing protocols and standards related to terrestrial and marine wildlife and addressing the threats they face. It follows the adoption of a protocol to control the spread of COTS, which is tailored to the organism's nature in the Red Sea environment. The protocol allows for a swift and effective response to limit its spread and protect coral reefs.

In December 2022, the NCW convened a workshop to discuss combating COTS outbreaks and develop a protocol for studying the current situation and identifying the causes of the increase in COTS numbers above the natural rate. The workshop also aimed to learn about best practices and applications for controlling the spread of damage from various global experts and consultants in this field.

The plan aims to identify operational procedures and establish the best response framework and mechanism for involving stakeholders. COTS is a marine organism that feeds on algae and types of bacteria that grow on coral reefs. However, it poses a significant threat to ecosystems when it undergoes outbreaks, which have been linked to significant damage to coral reefs in the Red Sea, particularly during the observed spawning season, from the last two weeks of July to the first two weeks of August.

Understanding the organism's spatial distribution, density, and reproductive behavior during its peak period is crucial for effective management and mitigation of potential outbreaks that could lead to coral-reef degradation.

The survey plan offers baseline data on COTS populations in key areas of the Red Sea that can be utilized to predict and manage outbreaks of the organism in a timely manner, thus protecting coral-reef health and biodiversity. The approach is based on accuracy and practical considerations to ensure the comprehensiveness and feasibility of the survey.

Cooperation between marine biologists, local stakeholders, and divers in this initiative is an integral part of conservation efforts in the region.

The crown-of-thorns is a large starfish species belonging to the echinoderm phylum. It inhabits tropical and subtropical Pacific reefs and typically reproduces when the water temperature is 28 degrees Celsius.

During outbreaks, its consumption of coral reefs exceeds the growth rates of reefs. One of the main causes of this organism's outbreak is the imbalance of the food chain and overfishing of the organisms that feed on it, the most important of which is the Napoleon fish, or tarpon.