Sheikh Mohammed with other top dignitaries during the launching ceremony on Friday. Twitter photo

Gulf Today, Staff Reporter

His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, launched on Friday, the UAE Tourism Strategy 2031, which comes under the ‘Projects of the 50’ as one of the biggest projects of the next years.

The strategy aims to strengthen the position of the UAE as one of the best destinations in the world for tourism.

Sheikh Mohammed said: “Today, we approved UAE’s Tourism Strategy 2031. UAE ranks among the top 10 global tourist destinations. Our goal is to boost our competitiveness by attracting Dhs100 billion as additional tourism investments and welcome 40 million hotel guests in 2031.”

His Highness added: “Tourism is key to diversifying our economy and boosting UAE’s global competitiveness. In the first quarter of 2022, our airports received 22 million passengers. Our goal is for the tourism sector's contribution to be Dhs450 billion of GDP in 2031.”

The strategy, which comes in partnership with various federal and local tourism authorities, national airlines, and international institutions and companies, aims to enhance the unified tourism identity and support the UAE integrated and well-established tourism ecosystem, in order to provide a distinguished experience for tourists from all over the world.

The strategy aims to raise the tourism sector’s contribution to the GDP to Dhs450 billion, with an annual increase of Dhs27 billion, attract new investments of Dhs100 billion to the tourism sector in the country, and attract 40 million hotel guests.

The strategy includes 25 initiatives and policies to support the development of the tourism sector in the country. It is based on 4 key directions: strengthening the unified national tourism identity; developing and diversifying specialised tourism products; building tourism capabilities; encouraging the contribution of national cadres in the tourism sector; and increasing investments in all tourism sectors.

The strategy’s initiatives and directions will enhance the country’s efforts in providing an attractive and safe national tourism environment, pioneering and integrated tourism services, diverse and unique destinations, and a developed infrastructure for the tourism sector.

The strategy is expected to contribute to encouraging tourism investment in various related sectors, including travel, aviation and hospitality, as well as creating new investment opportunities, attracting more international companies to the local market, and developing tourism data and statistics.

The National Tourism Strategy 2031 comes in cooperation between the Ministry of Economy and various local and federal concerned entities and institutions, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Federal Authority for Identity, Citizenship, Customs and Port Security, the UAE Central Bank, the General Civil Aviation Authority, the UAE airlines, the World Tourism Organisation, a number of international companies and the Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre.