Page 410 - MOET ENGLISH PR REPORT - OCTOBER 2025 (Part 1)

10/29/25, 2:52 PM UAE pledges $6bn in new tourism investment mapping with Africa
The plan positions tourism as a central pillar for sustainable development and
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economic diversification, underscoring the UAE’s growing role as a key investor
and strategic partner in Africa.

Al-Marri said that the UAE and Africa stand at a pivotal moment in developing a
resilient and sustainable tourism sector.

He added: “This milestone is marked by the launch of a new investment mapping
featuring diverse tourism projects in the fields of aviation, logistics services,
infrastructure, and the digital sector, with an estimated total value of

approximately $6 billion and the potential to generate 70,000 job opportunities in
various countries of the African continent.”

Between 2019 and 2023, UAE investments in Africa exceeded $110 billion,
ranking the Gulf nation as the fourth-largest investor globally on the continent,
after the US, China, and the EU.

Over $70 billion of that capital has gone into green and renewable energy projects,
highlighting the UAE’s focus on sustainable growth.

Al-Marri noted that tourism ranks among the top five Emirati investment sectors
in Africa, alongside energy, infrastructure, logistics, and real estate.

The new round of projects announced at the summit marks an expansion of this

strategy, building on the UAE’s ambitions to align investment with climate goals
and sustainable tourism development.

The summit, which began in Dubai on Oct. 27 under the theme “Building Bridges
for Sustainable Growth,” is organized by The Bench as part of the Future
Hospitality Summit 2025.

The summit coincided with remarks from Secretary-General Elect of the UN
World Tourism Organization for the 2026–2029 term, Shaikha Nasser Al-Nowais,

who revealed that the global tourism and travel sector contributed $10.9 trillion to
the world’s gross domestic product in 2024, accounting for 10 percent of the
global economy.

Speaking to WAM on the sidelines of the summit, she said this contribution is
expected to rise to $11.7 trillion in 2025, marking a 6.7 percent increase over 2024
and a 13 percent growth compared with 2019 levels.

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