Tourism to Egypt since January increased by 30%: minster

CAIRO – 24 April 2018: Tourism Minister Rania al-Mashat said that the first quarter of 2018 saw a 30-percent increase in the number of tourists visiting Egypt compared to 2017.

In a press conference on the sidelines of the Arabian Travel Market Exhibition held in Dubai, Mashat praised Arab tourism to Egypt, which represents 30 percent of tourism to the country.

Mashat promised that the government will focus on medical tourism under the supervision of the Prime Minister Sherif Ismail.

In March, Ayman Abdel Aziz, secretary general of a newly formed technical committee for medical tourism under the supervision of the Cabinet, said that 20 hospitals would be ready soon to receive patients from abroad.

The medical tourism program would offer heart, orthopedic, eye and other surgeries in the first phase for 15 Arab and African countries, Abdel Aziz explained

Mashat affirmed that she will invite tourism decision makers in the Gulf to visit Egypt to explore investment and tourism opportunities in various Egyptian cities.

Moreover, Mashat highlighted the procedures Egypt has carried out to attract Arab tourists, including facilitating procedures for entering the country and issuing visas to Arab visitors.

In March, an official said the ministers of foreign affairs and aviation are working on establishing a mechanism to issue facilitated medical tourism visas to foreign patients for the first time in the country.