Cairo - Tourism Minister Yehya Rashed met the president and vice president of the Italian Federation of Tourism Associations (FIAVET), Jacopo De Ria and Ivana Jelenic, in Cairo Wednesday. The minister discussed ways to stimulate tourism between the countries and cooperation between the Egyptian Tourism Ministry and FIAVET. The two sides agreed to hold a meeting with FIAVET's board of directors in November, noting that it will attract the attention of Italian tourism companies. De Ria affirmed that FIAVET intends to promote Egypt as a tourist destination and put the country at the top of its tourism programs in the coming period. He pointed out that Egypt was the first country he visited when he began his career in tourism, and hence it has a "special place in [his] heart". According to figures announced by Italian news agency ANSAmed, Italian tourism in Egypt rose 70% in the first six months of 2017, compared to the same period last year. Egypt has been struggling to recover the badly-affected tourism sector, after years of political turmoil following the 25 January Revolution.
