Page 219 - MOE ENGLISH PR REPORT - SEPTEMBER 2024 (International)

9/30/24, 10:53 AM Small Business | The Tribune

UAE tourism sector

witnesses steady growth

with hotel establishment

revenues increasing by 7

per cent to reach AED

24.6 billion in H1 2024

24-7 Press Release Newswire
Tuesday, September 17, 2024 at 11:00am GMT+4

DUBAI, UAE, September 17, 2024 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The UAE Ministry of Economy revealed that the UAE's
tourism sector is continuing to grow, bolstering its contribution to the growth and sustainability of the national
economy. The revenues generated by hotel establishments in the country have surpassed AED 24.6 billion in the
first half of 2024, up seven per cent compared to the corresponding period in 2023. Furthermore, the number of
hotel guests across the UAE's seven emirates reached approximately 15.3 million during the first six months of
2024, reflecting a 10.5 per cent growth.

H.E. Abdulla Bin Touq Al Marri, UAE Minister of Economy and Chairman of the Emirates Tourism Council, said:

"The latest results demonstrate the effectiveness of the country's efforts and strategies in enhancing the tourism
sector, in line with international best practices. They also underline the competitive advantage of the UAE's
tourism offerings both at regional and global levels. These indicators are crucial in realising the objectives of the
UAE Tourism Strategy 2031, which aims to boost the sector's contribution to the national GDP to 450 billion
dirhams and attract 40 million visitors to hotel establishments by the next decade."

His Excellency added: "Thanks to the directives of the wise leadership, UAE tourism has been able to maintain its
growth in terms of both revenues and hotel capacity. The hotel occupancy rate in the country reached 79.5 per cent
in H1 2024, which is among the highest globally, growing by 3.7 per cent compared to H1 2023." His Excellency
noted that national efforts continue to support joint action in the implementation of tourism-related plans and
strategies and solidify the UAE's position as one of the best destinations in the world, in the light of the We the

UAE 2031 vision.

H.E. Bin Touq explained: "In terms of travel and aviation, the country's airports recorded an increase in passenger
numbers during the first half of this year. This echoes the international confidence and trust in the quality and
efficiency of travel services in the UAE, as well as the quality of air transport infrastructure. The UAE has
invested in aviation infrastructure development projects, increasing airports' capacity to accommodate larger
numbers of passengers, with a total capacity now estimated at more than 160 million passengers. In addition, the
UAE has entered cooperation agreements with 188 countries around the world in the air transport sector. This

facilitates inbound and outbound flights to these destinations and consolidates the UAE's position as a leading
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