Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA), which supervises tourism development in Qatar, presented its tourism strategy and plans at the recently concluded Finance and Investment Forum in Qatar in Paris.

“As we continue to expand our presence on the global stage, Qatar is quickly becoming a sought-after destination for international business and recreational travellers,” said Ahmed Al Nuaimi, chairman of QTA, in a panel which presented Qatar’s plans in sports, culture and tourism.

It has been a little more than one year since QTA launched its new tourism strategy for Qatar at the World Travel Market in London, emphasising a focus on business and upscale leisure tourism with the objective to increase tourism by 20 per cent within the next 5 years.

“We will look to exploit the tremendous economic growth achieved in Qatar as well as the convenience of our geographical location at the cross roads between East and West,” he added.

Al Nuaimi pointed out that contributing to the growth of tourism in Qatar is the economic expansion which has attracted large numbers of visitors across different sectors and markets including oil and gas, real estate, banking and finance, education, research, sports and entertainment.

“This has led to the rise of Qatar becoming the ideal destination for doing business in the region.  More than 90 per cent of the visitors come to Qatar for business, conferences and trade.”

QTA looks to capitalise on this to develop Qatar into a premier global destination for meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions, Al Nuaimi said.

Al Nuaimi talked about the many development projects under way in Qatar including the construction of two new conference centers and cultural projects as well as the addition of new hotels and rooms to the hospitality sector.

'We recognize that our country needs to be positioned as more than a destination for business travel,” Al Nuaimi said.

“To this end, QTA participates in many key trade exhibitions abroad which are focused on the lucrative meetings, incentive, conference and exhibitions industries, and most recently completed a targeted 5-city roadshow campaign through Europe meeting with decision makers in the industry encouraging travellers to extend their stay in Qatar to enjoy the many cultural and sports activities as well as entertainment and recreation available in Qatar.”

Al Nuaimi continued: “Qatar is quickly becoming an international sports capital, hosting important global championship events, in addition to our bid to host the World Cup in 2022.”

“Qatar has become prominent on the cultural itineraries of travellers, especially coming to see the outstanding landmarks in Qatar.  We are encouraging visitors to take advantage of these exciting events.”

QTA has undertaken a number of initiatives towards development in several business sectors.

The initiatives include a recent study on performance and progress in the hotel sector in Qatar, developing a coordination plan with the Supreme Council of Development Planning and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Urban Planning to develop a framework on tourism matters and holding regular committee meetings with general managers of hotels in Qatar.

There is also a memorandum of understanding in place with Qatar Development Bank to support and back tourism projects.

Internationally, QTA is spearheading cooperative projects with tourism agencies from different regions, including Europe, Latin America and Asia by signing memorandums of understanding which call for establishing long-term tourism cooperation in planning and development.

“It is our aim to create and foster opportunities for constructive international cooperation in the tourism and exhibitions industries,” said Al Nuaimi.

Al Nuaimi also presented to the audience the recent change to the investment promotion law, allowing expatriate investors to raise their ownership percentage from 49 per cent to 100 per cent in tourism and entertainment investments. – TradeArabia News Service