CAIRO: Egypt is planning to host a large festival in September in Cairo's central Tahrir Square with a number of global celebrities in an effort to boost tourism, organizers said on Tuesday. The main purpose is to activate tourism in Egypt by telling the whole world that Egypt has regained stability and security, said Atef El-Negmy, chief of Egyptian Arab Defense Association (ADA), one of the supervisors of the event. Just a few days before the parliamentary elections, the festival will be a celebration to say farewell to the past and welcome a new and peaceful democratic Egypt, organizers said. Famous singers, actors, writers and politicians from different countries will be invited to join the event, the organizers said, but did not say which celebrities they would be inviting. An important sector in the country's economy, Egypt's tourism has suffered major losses since the massive protests toppled the former regime in February. The country has been trying to boost the industry with promotion activities. BM
