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Saudi Arabia Establishes New Tourism Authority

Saudi Arabia Establishes New Tourism Authority
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Saudi Arabia Establishes New Tourism Authority

Saudi Arabia Establishes New Tourism Authority

Local tourism in Saudi Arabia had undergone several stages of development until it turned into an organized sector supported by regulations, projects and programs.

Saudi Arabia had also further polished its image as a tourism destination by the launching of e-visas for tourists. It opened its gates to the world in a way that matches its rich heritage and tourism attractions it has to offer visitors.

Many Saudi towns, cities and historic sites are gaining a competitive edge on local and international levels thanks to the attention they have secured from Kingdom authorities that have made transforming the country into a tourism destination a prevalent trend.

The Saudi Cabinet had approved the establishment of the Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) based on the recommendation of Council of Economic and Development Affairs.

King Salman bin Abdulaziz issued in February 2020 a royal decree to set up a new ministry for tourism, after cancelling the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage (SCTH), and appointed Ahmed Al-Khateeb as head of the ministry.

The Saudi Tourism Authority is tasked with supervising, developing and marketing tourist packages and products both locally and internationally.

Over the last two decades, Saudi Arabia underwent a number of advanced stages in the file of organized tourism. The Asir region, nestled in southern Saudi Arabia, witnessed the formation of the first committee to stimulate tourism back in 1995.

In 2000, the Supreme Commission for Tourism was established. Over the years its name was changed, until a Ministry of Tourism was established in 2020.

The Ministry seeks to raise the contribution of the tourism sector to the Gross domestic product (GDP) from 3% to 10%.

It also focuses on creating an attractive investment environment, providing diverse packages of tourism services and offers, developing tourist destinations and sites, generating one million jobs in the tourism sector, and qualifying human labor working in the sector.

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Italy Taking Action Against Paid Beaches

A view of the colorful houses and boats in the harbor of Marina Corricella on Procida Island, Italy. (Shutterstock)
A view of the colorful houses and boats in the harbor of Marina Corricella on Procida Island, Italy. (Shutterstock)
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Italy Taking Action Against Paid Beaches

A view of the colorful houses and boats in the harbor of Marina Corricella on Procida Island, Italy. (Shutterstock)
A view of the colorful houses and boats in the harbor of Marina Corricella on Procida Island, Italy. (Shutterstock)

Authorities are cracking down harder on illegal structures on Italy’s beaches as exorbitant prices are charged for umbrellas and lounge chairs.

In Ostia, the city beach of the capital Rome, several privately operated beach resorts have been closed on the orders of the city administration, according to dpa.

In the middle of peak season, two commercial beach resorts are currently being demolished. A public beach, which will be freely accessible to everyone at no cost, is to be built in their place. Similar efforts are underway in other regions, such as Liguria and Apulia.

Along Italy’s 7,500-kilometer Mediterranean coastline, there are thousands of privately operated beach resorts that rent out lounge chairs and umbrellas—a tradition that has developed over decades.

Currently, the average rental fee for two lounge chairs and an umbrella is about 40 euros per day. Now, however, authorities in several regions are taking action against the practice of allowing people access to the beach only if they pay for it. Another source of frustration is that high fences and walls block access in many places.

Yet, just as elsewhere in Europe, the coastline in Italy actually belongs to the state. By law, the shoreline should be freely accessible to everyone, everywhere, at no cost. However, more than half of the beaches are leased to private operators.

Officially, there are more than 7,300 so-called “Stabilimenti Balneari” in Italy. Most of them are family-run businesses.

The authorities’ stricter approach is also linked to a 2006 EU directive, the implementation of which in Rome has been repeatedly postponed.

According to the directive, government concessions for beach sections must be put out to tender on a regular basis because the land is public property. This process is now set to begin in 2027.

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Schoolchildren Leaving Critical Thinking to AI

FILE - The OpenAI logo is displayed on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen with output from ChatGPT, March 21, 2023, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File) 
FILE - The OpenAI logo is displayed on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen with output from ChatGPT, March 21, 2023, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File) 
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Schoolchildren Leaving Critical Thinking to AI

FILE - The OpenAI logo is displayed on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen with output from ChatGPT, March 21, 2023, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File) 
FILE - The OpenAI logo is displayed on a mobile phone in front of a computer screen with output from ChatGPT, March 21, 2023, in Boston. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File) 

Schoolchildren are dispensing with analytical thinking as they increasingly lean on artificial intelligence, a fast-changing technology that many teenagers struggle to understand, a new survey shows, according to dpa.

The research, published in August by US-based media advice organization Common Sense Media, showed that pupils are foregoing “critical thinking” as the use of chatbots in the classroom expands.

Around 40% of those asked said they suspected that using AI is not helping them learn, agreeing that relying on chatbots means they generate fewer ideas of their own.

Around six in ten of the approximately 1,000 participants who use AI do so to get an answer to their schoolwork, with a quarter not bothering to rephrase the response and 31% changing the wording to make the response sound like their own.

In cases where schools block AI platforms, six in ten pupils turned to personal devices to access chatbots for help with assignments.

However, almost three-quarters of those surveyed said they have not been instructed or advised how to use AI “safely.”

“Students understand that AI threatens learning, but the reality is that it is too tempting and convenient for them to look the other way,” said Common Sense Media chief executive Jim Steyer, who called on adults to provide children with skills to use the technology “responsibly.”

Previous research has suggested that adults - including those in elite professions - are as susceptible as teenagers to letting AI do their thinking for them.

In 2025, Microsoft found multiple signs of reduced cognitive effort and less critical thinking in a survey of over 300 knowledge workers.

The latest findings were published as another poll showed that, for the first time, a majority of young adults are “more concerned than excited" about AI, with only 10% of under-30’s feeling “excited.”

Published by the Pew Research Center, the survey found 52% of all age groups deeming themselves as concerned that AI could lead to mass unemployment.

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Saudi, Syrian Broadcasting Authorities Sign MoU to Strengthen Cooperation

The Saudi Broadcasting Authority and the General Authority for Radio and Television in Syria signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Riyadh on Sunday to strengthen relations and develop cooperation in radio and television. (SPA)
The Saudi Broadcasting Authority and the General Authority for Radio and Television in Syria signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Riyadh on Sunday to strengthen relations and develop cooperation in radio and television. (SPA)
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Saudi, Syrian Broadcasting Authorities Sign MoU to Strengthen Cooperation

The Saudi Broadcasting Authority and the General Authority for Radio and Television in Syria signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Riyadh on Sunday to strengthen relations and develop cooperation in radio and television. (SPA)
The Saudi Broadcasting Authority and the General Authority for Radio and Television in Syria signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Riyadh on Sunday to strengthen relations and develop cooperation in radio and television. (SPA)

The Saudi Broadcasting Authority and the General Authority for Radio and Television in Syria signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in Riyadh on Sunday to strengthen relations and develop cooperation in radio and television, the Saudi Press Agency reported.

Minister of Media Salman Al-Dossary and Syrian Minister of Information Khaled Zaarour attended the signing ceremony. The MoU was signed by Saudi Broadcasting Authority CEO Ali bin Abdullah Al-Zaid and Director General of the Radio and Television Authority in Syria Alaa Barselo.

The MoU provides for the exchange of audio and visual programs in areas of mutual interest, including culture, education, science, entertainment, sports, and news. It also covers the exchange of information and expertise, visits between experts and specialists, and the organization of conferences, seminars, and workshops, as well as making use of available opportunities of mutual interest.