Egypt's FM highlights 'soft power' in Mali meeting with alumni    Egypt's foreign minister opens business forum in Niger, targets new partnerships    Egypt's FM delivers Al-Sisi message to Niger's leader, seeks deeper security ties    Rafah Crossing 'never been closed for one day' from Egypt: PM    Egypt will keep pushing for Gaza peace, aid: PM    Remittances from Egyptians abroad surge 70% YoY in July–May: CBE    Sudan's ambassador to Egypt holds reconstruction talks on with Arab League    Egypt's current account gap narrows, but overall BoP records deficit    Al-Sisi urges accelerated oil, gas discoveries, lower import bill    SCZONE signs $52.6m textile industry deals during China investment tour    Egypt hosts international neurosurgery conference to drive medical innovation    Egypt's EDA discusses Johnson & Johnson's plans to expand investment in local pharmaceutical sector    I won't trade my identity to please market: Douzi    Sisi calls for boosting oil & gas investment to ease import burden    EGX to close Thursday for July 23 Revolution holiday    Egypt, Senegal sign pharma MoU to unify regulatory standards    Egyptian Drug Authority discusses plans for joint pharmaceutical plant in Zambia    Two militants killed in foiled plot to revive 'Hasm' operations: Interior ministry    Egypt, Somalia discuss closer environmental cooperation    Egypt foils terrorist plot, kills two militants linked to Hasm group    Giza Pyramids' interior lighting updated with new LED system    Egypt's EHA, Huawei discuss enhanced digital health    Foreign, housing ministers discuss Egypt's role in African development push    Korea Culture Week in Egypt to blend K-Pop with traditional arts    Egypt reveals heritage e-training portal    Three ancient rock-cut tombs discovered in Aswan    Sisi launches new support initiative for families of war, terrorism victims    Egypt expands e-ticketing to 110 heritage sites, adds self-service kiosks at Saqqara    Egypt's Irrigation Minister urges scientific cooperation to tackle water scarcity    Palm Hills Squash Open debuts with 48 international stars, $250,000 prize pool    Egypt's Democratic Generation Party Evaluates 84 Candidates Ahead of Parliamentary Vote    On Sport to broadcast Pan Arab Golf Championship for Juniors and Ladies in Egypt    Golf Festival in Cairo to mark Arab Golf Federation's 50th anniversary    Germany among EU's priciest labour markets – official data    Paris Olympic gold '24 medals hit record value    A minute of silence for Egyptian sports    Russia says it's in sync with US, China, Pakistan on Taliban    It's a bit frustrating to draw at home: Real Madrid keeper after Villarreal game    Shoukry reviews with Guterres Egypt's efforts to achieve SDGs, promote human rights    Sudan says countries must cooperate on vaccines    Johnson & Johnson: Second shot boosts antibodies and protection against COVID-19    Egypt to tax bloggers, YouTubers    Egypt's FM asserts importance of stability in Libya, holding elections as scheduled    We mustn't lose touch: Muller after Bayern win in Bundesliga    Egypt records 36 new deaths from Covid-19, highest since mid June    Egypt sells $3 bln US-dollar dominated eurobonds    Gamal Hanafy's ceramic exhibition at Gezira Arts Centre is a must go    Italian Institute Director Davide Scalmani presents activities of the Cairo Institute for ITALIANA.IT platform    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



Egypt looks to tap volunteer tourism market
Published in Daily News Egypt on 03 - 11 - 2010

CAIRO: In an effort to establish a fairly untapped market in Egypt, the United States Embassy in Cairo has joined with the Ministry of Tourism to launch an initiative to promote volunteer tourism.
The new initiative, launched by US Ambassador to Egypt Margaret Scobey and Minister of Tourism Zoheir Garannah, will support American volunteer tourism in the Arab world's most populous country, which depends the sector as one of its main revenue earners.
“Tourists want to meet everyday people and volunteer their time, there are no limits to what people can do,” Scobey told Daily News Egypt.
“They can join in a meal with a host family, spend time at an orphanage, study abroad, volunteer medical services and do many other things to help,” she added.
The tourism industry in Egypt contributes a significant amount to the economy by employing about 12 percent of the workforce.
Garannah noted that Egypt saw over 320,000 American tourists in 2009 and there was an 18 percent growth of tourists in 2010.
The number of total tourist arrivals to Egypt reached 14 million in the year to October 2010, and the sector is expected to see annual growth of not less than 18 percent by the end of 2010, Garannah told the media earlier this week.
Volunteer tourism is becoming a popular trend to “do good” with the concept of tourists leaving their destination better than when they arrived. While Egypt offers plenty of cultural and historical attractions, it has much more to offer with ample opportunities to directly benefit the local population.
The concept of volunteer tourism represents a growing sector of the industry called SAVE (Scientific, Academic, Volunteer, Educational) tourism, which encourages travelers to engage in scientific or academic research, learning or volunteer tourism to better their host destination.
The development of volunteer tourism provides human capital and technical expertise as well as creating important interpersonal cultural connections between the tourist and local cultures.
Adel Zaki, president of International Travel and Tourist Agency, said, “Volunteer tourism isn't a new trend, it is already popular among Europeans and Latin Americans and is now becoming more popular with Americans.”
“Even though the new generation is technology driven, they have a need to travel and help others and that satisfies an emotion for them,” said Zaki.
According to a survey conducted by Travelocity, an online travel agency, 38 percent of Americans planned a volunteer experience during a holiday in 2008.
Volunteer tourism programs have been successfully implemented in many countries, including some parts of the Middle East, and have benefited the local communities as well as have been profitable for local tour operators.
Zaki commented on the notion that there is no single type of volunteer tourist and ranges from young students to wealthy, older tourists and everything in between.
After introducing the initiative, Scobey and Garannah led a discussion with local representatives from the tourism industry to discuss how to establish this industry in Egypt and market the program.
They were joined by a visiting tourism industry expert and a tourism entrepreneurship trainer to help lead the discussion. Future events will focus on other targets, such as tourism students, rural non-governmental organizations, start-up tourism entrepreneurs and Red Sea tour operators.
“We don't have to sell this to Americans; they already want to come to Egypt so it sells itself and creates a win-win situation,” said Scobey.


Clic here to read the story from its source.