The number of tourists that visited Egypt in the first five months of 2021 reached 2 million, Minister of Tourism Khaled El-Enany said on Wednesday, noting that the country applies coronavirus preventive measures professionally. In a seminar held by the Mostaqbal Watan political party, El-Enany said the Egyptian state is dealing decisively with the issues connected to the security and health of tourists and does not accept any dereliction in these two matters, especially amid the pandemic. El-Enany hailed the coronavirus preventive measures the state is applying in this regard, saying they are carried out professionally. As hotels and resorts gear up for the return of holidaymakers this summer, Egypt has fully vaccinated all staff working in key industries across both the Red Sea and South Sinai governorates, two of the country's tourism hotspots. El-Enany said the number of tourists who visited the country in the first five months of this year represents 40 percent of traffic in the same period in 2019. The minister said 13 million tourists visited Egypt in 2019. Two million tourists visiting the country during this period means 400,000 tourists per month, El-Enany said, noting that this number is good amid the pandemic compared to other surrounding markets. Two million people work in the tourism sector in Egypt, El-Enany said, adding that tourism legislations will include a fund to support workers in the sector during periods of crises. El-Enany said the ministry has contracted with a British-Canadian company to prepare a media advertising strategy for Egyptian tourism globally. He noted that the strategy will be delivered to Egypt early in July. This international promotional campaign will extend for 3 years at a total cost of $90 million, El-Enany said. The minister affirmed that tourism represents a big part of national income and a big source of hard currency, adding that the state makes EGP 1 billion in profits from every million tourists. In January, El-Enany said only 3.4 million tourists visited Egypt in 2020 due to the coronavirus, while the country was expecting to receive 15 million tourists that year. In remarks to Al-Arabiya last month, El-Enany expected the tourism sector in the country to recover by mid-2022, saying current tourist revenues represent 43 percent of revenues gained before the spread of the coronavirus. This recovery will be achieved in case the coronavirus vaccines proved effective and were distributed at a suitable pace in the countries which tourists come from, El-Enany said. Egypt also expects a surge in tourism revenues, especially following a Russian decision to resume charter flights to Egypt's Red Sea airports, including Hurghada and Sharm El-Sheikh.
