Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Tourism Mr. Ahmed bin Aqeel Al Khateeb has launched a three-year Digital Tourism Strategy as part of the kingdom’s efforts and plans to develop the local tourism sector.
According to the statement, “The Ministry of Tourism is pioneering nine innovative programs consisting of 31 core initiatives by 2025 – positively impacting residents, visitors, investors, and the public and private sectors.”
These initiatives will accelerate the kingdom’s National Tourism Strategy and Vision 2030 targets, including 100 million new visits and tourism’s 10 percent GDP contribution.
Ahmed Al-Khateeb Tourism Minister Saudi Arabia
“The Digital Tourism Strategy will help us to redesign tourism in the kingdom and achieve our ambitious Vision 2030 objectives of making Saudi Arabia a world-leading tourist destination. The kingdom’s execution of this strategy over the next three years will inspire the tourism sector globally. We must embrace the opportunities that the digital era presents us. We are welcoming the most innovative, disruptive minds in the world, to create better digital tourism regulations. We want travelers and investors to have certainty that smart regulations are being adopted across the sector. Saudi Arabia will continue to pioneer and lead these efforts at a national and global scale, ultimately creating more jobs, more prosperity, and bringing more visitors into the kingdom.”
The Digital Tourism Strategy intends to position the kingdom as the global digital tourism leader. Further, the strategy aims to provide tourists and stakeholders with a more seamless experience that enables a thriving tourism sector.
The Ministry of Tourism will also pioneer new digital business models in order to improve market demand for service providers. The new models will include disruptive regulations for smart hotels and streamlined methods of digital travel, creating a frictionless seamless travel experience for tourists, businesses, and governments.
The strategy was built in consultation with the Digital Government Authority, the National Digital Transformation Unit, and a Global Advisory Board of 22 subject matter experts in digital transformation and tourism, as per the statement.
