Saudi Arabia appointed Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdul-Aziz to head a recently-formed state body to promote tourism in the kingdom, Saudi News Agency (SPA) reported Tuesday.
It said King Fahd issued a decree appointing Prince Sultan bin Salman as secretary-general of the higher council for tourism, a post it said would have ministerial status.
Saudi Arabia set up the council in April to develop its tourism sector, part of a plan to diversify the economy away from oil, Reuters said.
The Saudi cabinet earlier approved broad guidelines for issuing visas to tourists, a move seen as a first step towards opening up to foreign visitors, Reuters added.
Prince Sultan, born in 1956, is a son of Prince Salman bin Abdul Aziz, the governor of Riyadh.
A former senior air force officer, he was the only Arab to go on a space mission on board the space shuttle Discovery in 1985 - (Agencies)
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