Foreign tourists are said to be steering clear of Egypt, especially those afraid of flying and of any possible spillover from the fighting in Afghanistan.
In a lengthy report on the impact of the September 11 terror attacks on the US, the Washington Post said that “hotels are closed, international airlines are scratching Egypt as a destination, and sales are eroding markedly even in tangential industries like alcoholic beverages.”
Tourism is crucial to Egypt's economy. The country drew 5.4 million visitors in 2000 despite tensions and violence elsewhere in the Middle East, and with a number of luxury projects under construction, including private airports like Marsa Alam, the government had hopes of bettering that figure by 400,000 this year.
Tourism is the government's largest source of revenue - $4.3 billion in 2000 - and it accounts for 10 percent of Egypt's gross domestic product. About 2.2 million Egyptians have jobs related to tourism, according to the report.
"Tourist activity in October dropped 40 to 45 percent," the tourism minister, Mamdouh El Beltagi, told the state-owned Middle East News Agency. "The coming months will witness a larger drop in reservations due to cancellations by a number of tourist companies."
"It is the worst crisis since the gulf war in 1991," Osman Abaza, public relations manager for Mena House Oberoi, a century-old five-star hotel at the base of the Giza Pyramids told the paper. "We have only 40 percent occupancy, although the hotel was fully booked until January."
The US has promised $200 million to fill in Egypt’s loss due to the terrorist attacks and their consequences – Albawaba.com
© 2001 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
