Egypt is confident of luring back millions of foreign visitors and putting a smile on their faces, according to its new tourism minister, despite heavy first quarter losses and setbacks including the downing of a Russian passenger plane. Yehia Rashed said, in a statement published on Youm7, that the ancient land of the pyramids and Red Sea resorts was determined to secure a strong recovery even though the number of foreign tourists fell by 40 percent in the first quarter of 2016, compared with the same period last year. The most populous Arab nation aims to attract 12 million tourists by the end of 2017 with a six-point plan, he said. "I am very hopeful, optimistic about the future of tourism into Egypt," Rashed told Reuters in an interview. "I want to get that smile that you are smiling into the faces of everybody. We want to stay positive."
