Bahrain Ministry of Tourism put on hold
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Plans to establish a Ministry of Tourism in Bahrain have been delayed indefinitely because the economic crisis has left the government struggling to find money to support it, UAE newspaper, The National, has reported. The proposed ministry would have acted as a promotional body for the country’s tourism sector, which officials expect will contribute 25% of the country’s GDP by 2016, the report said.
“Everything was ready in terms of legal framework for the ministry, and we even had a new building that we were going to move into,” Badr Nasser, who heads up the country’s current Tourist Marketing & Promotion Projects department. “But due to the tight financial situation that we are facing, allocating a budget to the new ministry is something we can’t do now.”
Bahraini travel and tourism businesses have reportedly criticised the move.
“At a time when the entire region is fighting for tourists, having a Ministry of Tourism to promote the country would have helped us overcome the crisis,” The National quoted Abdelrahman al Mahmoud, General Manger of Awal Travel & Tourism in Manama, as saying.
According to the report, Bahrain currently has about 110 hotels, with approximately 60% of the country’s tourists deriving from the GCC region, mainly Saudi Arabia.
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