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In this file photo, an Emirates airliner is parked at the gate of Dubai International Airport in the United Arab Emirates.Associated Press
UAE Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, said after a cabinet meeting in the capital Abu Dhabi that hotel occupancy rates have increased by more than 40% amid the coronavirus hit in 2021.
“In the first half of 2022, our tourism revenue exceeded AED19 billion (US$5.2 billion),” Sheikh Mohammed said, according to the official WAM news agency.
“Total hotel guests reached 12 million, a 42% increase, and we expect a strong winter travel performance this year.”
Dubai, an established holiday destination, is expected to host huge numbers of football fans during the World Cup in November and December due to the scarcity of accommodation in the tiny country of Qatar.
Dubai, one of the Gulf cities, has daily shuttle flights to and from Qatar during the World Cup, allowing fans to stay outside the wealthy country and still watch the game.
Dubai Airport was the world’s busiest airport for international travel before the pandemic, handling 27.8 million passengers in the first half of this year, an increase of more than 160% over the same period in 2021.
Rapid vaccinations have allowed the UAE to recover quickly from the pandemic, with visitor numbers rising sharply as Dubai hosted the World Expo from October to March last year.
Sheikh Mohammed said the economy has grown by more than 22 percent this year, with foreign trade worth more than 1 trillion dirhams ($27 billion), compared with 840 billion dirhams before the pandemic.
Cabinet also approved electric cargo planes “powered entirely by clean energy”, as well as a new law aimed at increasing private sector participation in government projects.
WAM said the law would encourage “private sector participation in development and strategic projects, increasing investment in projects of economic and social value”.
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