Saudi Arabia: Tourism to generate 400K jobs, contribute 5.4 percent to non-oil GDP

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – The tourism sector, which is considered the prime mover of the hospitality industry in Saudi Arabia, is forecast to contribute 5.4 percent to the kingdom’s non-oil gross domes

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia – The tourism sector, which is considered the prime mover of the hospitality industry in Saudi Arabia, is forecast to contribute 5.4 percent to the kingdom’s non-oil gross domestic product in 2015.

This number is slated to rise to 5.7 percent in 2020. Saudi officials are upbeat that the kingdom’s economic diversification strategy will pay off and maintain growth in the non-oil sector, driven by hefty public spending and strong consumer demand.

The local tourism sector will generate 400,000 jobs in the next five years, according to officials from the Arab country’s tourism authority.

The chief executive officer of SEDCO Holding, Anees Ahmed Moumina, said, in remarks to Al-Riyadh newspaper that the religious tourism sector continues to rise and become a magnet for investors and job seekers. He indicated that the Saudisation of jobs in the tourism industry is growing as the ministry of labor has been introducing various vocational programs to prepare national cadres that are capable of venturing into the hospitality industry.

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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