Saudi Arabia to Establish Marketing Tourism Offices

The Red Sea project is one of the major tourist destinations in Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Red Sea project is one of the major tourist destinations in Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia to Establish Marketing Tourism Offices

The Red Sea project is one of the major tourist destinations in Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)
The Red Sea project is one of the major tourist destinations in Saudi Arabia (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi Tourism Authority has set 24 plans that place Saudi Arabia as a top tourist destination on the local, regional, and global levels.
Last week, the Council of Ministers, headed by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz, approved the regulations of the Saudi Tourism Authority to play a crucial role in promoting Saudi Arabia as a top tourist destination on both regional and international levels.
- Establishing a database
According to the regulation, a copy of which was seen by Asharq Al-Awsat, the Authority achieved its goals in developing the necessary plans and policies for tourism marketing in the Kingdom, locally and internationally.
It must also promote destinations, propose developments in coordination with the Ministry of Tourism, and support and market events held by government agencies and the private sector.
The Authority will create a database of all available sites, tourist destinations, resorts, services, and events and update it periodically with the relevant authorities.
It will also be tasked with all Umrah-related promotions, including the development and management of its platform, in coordination with the relevant agencies.

Furthermore, the Authority will develop the necessary standards, tools, and mechanisms to measure visitor's experience and determine the priorities and challenges facing tourists. Reports will be shared with the Ministry.
The Authority will propose the necessary designs, policies, and procedures to prepare the development of tourist sites and destinations that need rehabilitation and submit them to the Ministry of Tourism.
- Marketing studies and research
Moreover, the Authority will work with the private sector to develop products and display them on platforms for local and global marketing.
It will prepare marketing studies and research on opportunities to develop the visitor experience in the Kingdom and cooperate with regional and international bodies and organizations.
The Authority must carry out marketing campaigns inside and outside the Kingdom to introduce tourism sites and products and register trademarks and any other intellectual property in its name, in accordance with the relevant regulations.
According to the new regulation, the Authority will develop media plans that support tourism marketing to be disseminated inside and outside the Kingdom.
It will also organize tourism forums, conferences, events, and exhibitions and participate.
- Small and medium enterprises
The Authority is scheduled to provide administrative, technical, and advisory assistance to tourism products' owners in the Kingdom and support small and medium enterprises in cooperation with the competent authorities.
It will also develop and implement training programs aimed at raising the efficiency of tourism marketing and contribute to the qualification and training of human cadres in this field.
Under the new regulations, the Authority will supervise media campaigns and advertisements promoting destinations and suggest investment opportunities that are required to improve the sector in the Kingdom.
It coordinates with the Ministry of Tourism, government agencies, and the private sector to develop a marketing policy for destinations and distribute tourism products outside the Kingdom to enhance the country's position as a global tourist destination.
- Tourist tracks

The Authority will determine the tourist tracks under the tourism sector strategy, in coordination with the Ministry, to ensure an experience consistent with the highest global standards.
The Minister of Tourism and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Tourism Authority, Ahmed al-Khateeb, said the approval of the Authority's regulations confirms the government's continued support to achieve the goals consistent with Vision 2030.
Khateeb emphasized that the significant growth witnessed by the Saudi Tourism Authority is a direct result of the Saudi leadership's commitment to organizing and supporting the tourism sector in general and the Authority in particular.
The Minister stressed that the leadership's support has also helped attract visitors worldwide, develop tourism products, empower the private tourism sector, and participate in the most important local and international tourism forums and events.
He asserted that this alignment with the Kingdom's Vision 2030 is a significant milestone for the tourism sector in Saudi Arabia.



Egypt Raises Fuel Prices for First Time in 2025

Representation photo: Arley Perez pumps diesel fuel into his truck at a Shell station on April 10, 2025 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP
Representation photo: Arley Perez pumps diesel fuel into his truck at a Shell station on April 10, 2025 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP
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Egypt Raises Fuel Prices for First Time in 2025

Representation photo: Arley Perez pumps diesel fuel into his truck at a Shell station on April 10, 2025 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP
Representation photo: Arley Perez pumps diesel fuel into his truck at a Shell station on April 10, 2025 in Miami, Florida. Joe Raedle/Getty Images/AFP

Egypt hiked prices on fuel products on Friday by up to almost 15%, state media reported, marking the first increase in 2025 as the government seeks to reduce fuel subsidies as required by the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) $8 billion support package.

The increases of between 11.76% and 14.81% on a wide range of fuel products come almost a month after the IMF approved the disbursement of $1.2 billion to Egypt following completion of the fourth review of its loan program signed last year.

Egypt has taken on back-to-back financing facilities with the IMF since 2016, when it agreed a $12 billion loan program to resuscitate its economy after years of political turmoil since the Arab Spring protests began.

Since then, the lender has pushed the government to cut fuel, electricity and food subsidies while expanding social safety nets.

The fund said in March that Egypt was committed to lowering its energy subsidies to reach cost recovery by December as it works to reduce a wide current account deficit, reported Reuters.

Prices for diesel fuel, one of the most commonly used fuels in the country, were raised by 2 Egyptian pounds ($0.0390) to 15.50 pounds per liter from 13.50 pounds.

Gasoline prices increased by as much as 14.5% depending on the grade, with 80 octane gasoline rising to 15.75 pounds, 92 octane to 17.25 pounds and 95 octane to 19 pounds.

Meantime, the prices of the butane cooking gas were hiked to 200 pounds per cylinder from 150 pounds.

Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly said in March that by the year's end the government will have stopped petroleum subsidies from being a financial strain, but it will continue to subsidize diesel to some degree and will not price it at 100% of its cost.

Egypt still spent about 10 billion Egyptian pounds ($197.71 million) on fuel subsidies each month, despite having raised prices three times in 2024, Petroleum Minister Karim Badawi said in October following the last hike that ranged between 11% and 17%.

Egypt in 2024 witnessed a sharp decline in revenues from its Suez Canal, a main source of foreign currency for the government, as the war in Gaza led Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen to attack vessels transiting the Red Sea in support of Palestinians.

That, combined with diminishing local natural gas production which Egypt had even begun exporting, has compounded the country's economic woes and left it strapped for dollars.

Egypt needs these dollars to import natural gas, petroleum and wheat for its sprawling food subsidy program that feeds more than 62 million people.

Since early 2022, the foreign currency shortage has curbed local business activity and led to backlogs at ports and delays in payments for commodities, forcing Egypt to request a 46-month expanded loan from the IMF.

The pound has since lost more than two-thirds of its value against the dollar in a series of staggered devaluations, while petrol prices in Egypt remain some of the lowest in the world.