The Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) has begun the process of reviewing the tourism sector strategy in partnership with stakeholders and partners from the public and private sectors.
It involves a wide-ranging series of one-on-one meetings with key policy and decision-makers and cross-sectoral stakeholder forums, the first of which is due to be held on May 15-16.
To quote Hassan Al Ibrahim, QTA’s Chief Tourism Development Officer, “with changes to the economic reality, both locally and internationally, Qatar’s leadership has taken new steps to stimulate the private sector’s involvement in developing key sectors of the economy. At the same time, the tourism industry in Qatar has grown and changed drastically from what it was in 2014. As we move ahead on the path of development, it is critical that we take all of these factors into account and make any changes necessary to our approach – as an organization and as a nation – to building the tourism industry.”
QTA is aiming 27 September 2017, which coincides with World Tourism Day, for the launch date of the refreshed strategy. World Tourism Day is due to be hosted in Qatar, and will have a series of events celebrating tourism’s economic, social and cultural role under the theme ‘Sustainable Tourism – a Tool for Development.’
QNTSS 2030 was launched in February 2014 with the aim of developing a sustainable tourism sector that celebrates Qatar’s cultural and natural gems, and helps diversify the country’s economy.
In Qatar, new sub-sectors have become significant contributors to the tourism industry, like cruise tourism, and tourism events and festivals.
According to the World Economic Forum’s Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report 2017, Qatar is the 2nd most competitive travel and tourism destination in the MENA region.