Egypt's Minister of Tourism Rania El-Mashat met on Thursday with the director of the US National Travel and Tourism Office Isabel Hill on the sidelines of Germany's leading tourism trade show ITB Berlin, where they discussed the US experience in managing the tourism sector, according to the Egyptian tourism ministry. Hill said that the US has moved away from bureaucracy towards a more marketing-based strategy with the help of the private sector. Minister El-Mashat said that the Egyptian tourism ministry is studying the US experience in restructuring the General Authority for Tourism Development. The two officials also discussed cooperation in the upcoming period through agreements or protocols suggested by officials in both countries. El-Mashat is currently in Berlin to head Egypt's delegation at ITB Berlin 2018. El-Mashat also met on Thursday with a number of foreign tour operators, who expressed their optimism for the return of tourism to Egypt, given the increase in reservations for Egypt in the upcoming season. The minister met with tour operators including Anex Tour, LMX Touristik, Der Touristic, ETI, FTI, and TUI. El-Mashat also discussed the problems that tour operators have faced in Egypt, asserting that the country is committed to all its agreements with foreign partners, and that it has paid most of its dues to foreign tour operators. According to Adela Ragab, the deputy tourism minister, who spoke to the media on Thursday, Egypt has paid between EGP 32 million and EGP 55 million in outstanding dues to 20 tour operators abroad.
