Travel and Tourism in UAE
Middle East travel and tourism has grown rapidly over the past five years with more people travelling from western countries to the Middle East for business or pleasure. However, following a sharp loss of more than 1.2 million jobs due to the global downturn, employment in the Middle East is predicted to grow by 1% in the next five years, as per figures released by the Middle East Development Organisations (MDA). The two economies, Saudi Arabia and Dubai, are the largest exporters of goods to the United Kingdom. Other countries in the region are increasing their exports, too, in response to the recession.
Employment in Dubai jumped by almost 13% between 2021, while employment in Saudi Arabia grew by three percent. Employment in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was up three percent over the same period. Overall, the region’s overall growth was the fourth highest of any G7 country. Employment in the UAE is expected to rise by one hundred thousand people to reach one million in the next decade, according to the forecasts. While there has been much debate over the impact of the global economic slowdown on employment in the UAE, Gulf States have taken a more optimistic view, predicting an additional ten thousand jobs over the next five years.
Employment in Saudi Arabia is expected to outstrip that of Dubai in every year from now until 2021, when the two cities will finish tied in second place. A report prepared by the Economic and Social Research Council of Qatar said that employment in the Gulf region will continue to outstrip that of the United Kingdom in all but three of the next seven years. The report predicted that there will be two million jobs in Qatar, two hundred thousand in Dubai, and an additional twenty thousand jobs in Saudi Arabia. Only Iran and Iraq saw higher increases in employment over the seven-year period.
Trends in Middle East Travel and Tourism in UAE and Middle East
In reaction to the slow down in the global economy, some forecasters in the Gulf region are saying that the slow down could lead to a rush of global investments into the Middle East. This could mean that over time the benefits of tourism in the region will far outweigh the negative effects. One study by the Boston Consulting Group said that the slowdown could result in a rush of investments into Middle East countries such as the UAE, which could drive up demand for low cost labor and enable them to build more roads and infrastructure to attract more visitors. One major international investment bank is already reportedly lining up its bets in the Middle East. Even the conservative World Trade Organization is looking to the Middle East for ways to boost its growth and diversify its sources of revenue.
Over the next few years the trends noted above are expected to hold, with employment rising in the Gulf states and the UAE at a rate much higher than that of the past. This could well mean that the middle east travel and tourism sector will overtake the health and wellness sectors over the next few decades. Some analysts believe that this could happen as early as 2021.
These trends have been noted by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) whose business and commercial council said that the number of tourists visiting the country will increase by more than 25 percent in the next five years. The capital Dubai will also see a huge growth with more than half a million visitors a year. Dubai is the second most populated city in the world and the largest construction and engineering centre in the world after Tokyo. The city has invested heavily in the development of its tourism and infrastructure facilities, and over time this should start to pay off. The UAE is making massive investments in public transport and the rail network in an attempt to improve air travel within the country and cut the costs of transport for visitors.
