Acting Chairman of Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA), Hassan al-Ibrahim said, The tourism sector in Qatar has achieved remarkable growth following the activation of the National Tourism Sector Strategy 2017-2023.
In an interview with Al-Watan newspaper, al-Ibrahim added that Qatar has advanced its position to become the most open tourist destination in the Middle East region and to occupy eighth place in the world.
It is now among the three best areas in terms of maritime tourism worldwide, he said, attributing this achievement to the new visa policy which allows nationals of some 88 countries to enter Qatar visa-free and free-of-charge, and also to the free transit visa that is valid for up to 96 hours.
He explained that the "+Qatar" campaign has promoted Qatar as a transit destination and increased passengers wishing to stop in Qatar by 40%, in addition to creating new tourism models.
Qatar, he pointed out, is among the few countries that applied electronic visa to all countries.
He stressed that Qatar has made these achievements during a relatively short period of time, especially in light of the continuing unjust siege on the country, and that this has been possible because of the directives of His Highness the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. He stressed that the siege was a catalyst and has resulted in accelerating the development of the tourism sector.
Al-Ibrahim added that tourism sector's contribution to the national economy is 6.7%, and the QTA is working on increasing this percentage in the coming years. He said the participation of the private sector in tourism development would be expanded, adding that a private company is setting up a "snow city" in Qatar.
Al-Ibrahim pointed out that the QTA has launched 13 representative offices in the target markets, including the major tourist markets in the world.
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