CAIRO: Egypt s revenues from tourism, a key part of the north African nation s economy, is expected to rise 18.4 percent to about $9 billion in 2007, Egyptian tourism minister Zoheir Garana said on Tuesday. We are creating more spending outlets, Garana told Reuters in the Qatari capital Doha, adding that revenues from the pivotal industry amounted to $7.6 billion in 2006. Garrana said he estimates a 10 percent rise in tourist arrivals to at least 10 million in the same period due to normal growth in the market. After tailing off sharply following a string of attacks by Islamist militants in the 1990s, tourist numbers in Egypt climbed to 8.6 million in 2005 and 9.1 million in 2006. Egypt, whose famed ancient sites like the Pyramids and the Valley of the Kings attract tourists from all over the world, wants to boost tourist numbers to 16 million by 2014. Garrana said the average number of nights a tourist spends is 10.
