In’l tourist arrivals in Saudi Arabia are up 575% to 3.6m
Data issued by the Saudi Ministry of Investment showed that spending by international tourists in the Kingdom jumped to SAR 27 billion in the first six months of 2022. This was after an increase in the number of incoming tourists to 6.1 million, totaling 46 million foreign and domestic tourists.
The ministry revealed in its latest monthly bulletin, seen by Al Arabiya.net, that the number of tourists coming to Saudi Arabia in the second quarter of the year 2022 increased on an annual basis by 575.4% to 3.6 million tourists, while the number of domestic tourists increased by 42.3% to 21.4 million tourists.
The ministry stated that spending by inbound tourists increased by 570% in the second quarter to SAR 15.7 billion. Domestic tourism spending increased by 31.5% in the same period to SAR 22.7 billion.
The Saudi market “Americana” stock topped trading with the first dual listing in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi.
Tourism is one of the promising sectors in the Kingdom, which contributes to achieving the transformation plan and diversifying sources of income. According to Vision 2030, the sector aims to raise its direct contribution to the gross domestic product to more than 10%. In addition, it aims to reach 100 million international and local tourists.
The Kingdom moved up 10 ranks to number three on the travel and tourism development index.
As part of its national tourism strategy, Saudi Arabia plans to launch a global model for tourism training.
The Saudi strategy aims to train young people to keep pace with the future of tourism, during the hosting of the World Summit of the World Travel and Tourism Council.
At this summit, the Saudi Kingdom will host 500 students from 58 countries between 18 and 26 in a unique training program. This is ahead of the Travel and Tourism Summit.
The summit sessions will discuss the importance of empowering youth at the international level. It will also witness discussions about sustainability in the digital age, and the role of youth in the transition to net zero carbon emissions.
Speakers at the summit will discuss ways to empower young people to be innovators and entrepreneurs in the future.
The training program includes students from many educational institutions, such as Kings College London, Harvard University, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network.
