EGYPT seeks to attract 3 million Chinese tourists annually by 2028 as part of the country’s ambitious strategy to increase its share in the Chinese tourism market, Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Ahmed Issa said Sunday.

Egypt currently receives between 4,000 and 5,000 Chinese tourists per week. “That is a good number compared to previous records, but I think we can do much more,” the minister told Xinhua in an interview.

Issa said that in order to host an increasing number of Chinese visitors, more flights and hotel rooms are required.

“We welcome Chinese hotel owners and investors to invest in Egypt, and we welcome Chinese tour operators to organize trips to Egypt,” he said.

Before the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, China had about 150 million outbound tourists in 2019. According to Issa, since Egypt began to record the number of foreign tourists in 2000, the number of Chinese visitors has never exceeded 300,000 in a single year.

Issa added that further growth of Chinese tourists in Egypt can be achieved through cooperation between the Egyptian tourism ministry and its Chinese counterpart, as well as with Chinese investors and tour operators.

The Egyptian minister said he was glad with the growth of the number of Chinese tourists in Egypt since the COVID restrictions were lifted, “but it is still a 10th of where it needs to be, where it can be, and where it should be,” he said.

“We have several programs that the Chinese tour operators and the Chinese airlines can benefit from,” he said, noting Egypt offers an incentive program for airlines, as well as “a co-marketing program for Chinese tour operators that have promotion strategies of Egyptian products to the Chinese tourists.”(Xinhua)