This year's Saudi Travel and Tourism Investment Forum, organized by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities from March 29 to April 3, was distinguished by an intensive scientific program that included Conferences and specialized morning events were held separately from the exhibition. 12 scientific sessions and forums were held in the Buraydah Hall at the Intercontinental Hotel in Riyadh, while the Riyadh International Exhibition Center witnessed the Saudi Travel and Tourism Investment Exhibition, scientific and training lectures and workshops.
Launching Mass Apps«
During his visit to the exhibition, HRH Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, President of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities, accompanied by HRH Prince Salman bin Sultan bin Salman, inaugurated the applications of the Tourism Information and Research Center (MAS) suitable for smart devices, and watched a presentation about Nassif House in Jeddah using 3D technology. .
His Highness toured the pavilions of the exhibition, which includes a number of tourism development councils in the regions, local companies working in tourism and travel, hotel pavilions, pavilions of government agencies, and the pavilions of the Authority and its affiliated centers. His Highness met with officials of the sponsors of the forum, namely: Saudi Arabian Airlines, Anjum Makkah Hotel (strategic partner), Nas Air, Saudi Post Corporation, Elaf Group (silver sponsor), and Al Hokair Group (hotel hospitality sponsor). His Highness met with the directors of the General Authority for Tourism and Antiquities in the regions and some artisans.
26 lectures and workshops
Through the various events, 26 scientific and training lectures and workshops were organized on the sidelines of the exhibition, during which the different experiences of countries and entities represented in the travel, tourism and hotel investment sides were presented. The workshops touched on the use of modern technologies to develop tourism services and the surrounding environments, and the need to activate modern media and social networking sites to increase sales and communicate with customers.
The event concluded on Friday with a workshop on social media in tourism and another workshop on the experiences of managing local online booking websites in Saudi Arabia.
The workshops aimed at presenting new investment opportunities in the fields of tourism development, in addition to encouraging and stimulating new investment initiatives, and highlighting the Kingdom's abundant potential and investment opportunities in the tourism fields.
The events included: Tourism Investment and Finance, Business Tourism, Antiquities and Museums, Investment in Urban Heritage, Investment in the Tourism Entertainment Industry in Saudi Arabia, National Tourism Human Resources, and Specialized Tourism Accommodation.
460,000 tourism jobs
In the session «National Tourism Resources: Challenges and Aspirations,» Dr. Abdulkarim Al Nujaidi, Deputy Executive Director of the Human Resources Development Fund, stressed the Fund's endeavor to localize jobs in the tourism sector, noting that the sector currently provides about 1,17,000 direct and indirect jobs, and that the demand in the next five years will reach 460,000 direct and indirect jobs. This is according to the executive strategy of the job localization program, which aims to provide skills and talents to create distinctive jobs in this sector.
Attracting global operators
Dr. Mohammed Al-Majed, Chief Operating Officer of the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation's Excellence Colleges, explained that the tourism and hospitality sector in the Kingdom suffers from the lack of national cadres in this sector, indicating that to remedy this, work has been done to attract international operators and provide them with opportunities to communicate with the labor market directly and prepare appropriate programs, as well as improve existing colleges with linking technical and vocational training outputs to match the outputs of international standards.
He pointed out that they have a plan in 2018 to reach 250,000 training seats in tourism, indicating that in terms of supporting the tourism and hospitality sector, the College of Tourism and Hospitality was opened as a technical college, then the system of excellence colleges was launched in Riyadh, and the Ministry of Finance approved the establishment of 3 new colleges of tourism and hospitality whose projects will be completed after four years in Najran, Khamis Mushait and Al-Ahsa.
Meccan participation and Hijazi songs
The Tourism Development Council in Makkah participated in a pavilion that attracted the attention of visitors, including the Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Zahi Al Hawass, who toured the pavilion and received a detailed explanation from the Director General of the General Authority for Tourism and Antiquities in the Makkah region Mr. Mohammed Abdullah Al-Omari. This year's participation included linking the past to the present through the Meccan Alley, tourist accommodation destinations from five-star hotels, and real estate developers. In addition to the participation of productive families, the pavilion included many companies with a Meccan character, the game of oboe and others, and the visitors enjoyed a lot of Hijazi songs that ignited the atmosphere with joy, which was presented by Wahib Bassamad, around which the visitors crowded, and the hospitality included Zamzam water which is one of the most prominent Meccan symbols.
«Sharqiya showcases its investment opportunities
The Eastern Province Pavilion carried the tourism and heritage identity of the Eastern Province, as it was designed inspired by the old Emirate Palace building (Saleh Islam Palace) with its unique architectural style.
