Tourism: Growth Industry Shrinking
very sad, its a beautiful country in need of revenue
Yemen, which has historically been one of the lowest earners of tourism revenue in the Middle East and North Africa region, was predicted to generate US$44 billion (Dh160.6bn) from tourism by 2020, in a report released in June by Fast Future, a UK-based tourism consultancy. By 2015, the tourism ministry, according to Mr Bail, aims to attract one million tourists.
However, the attacks and kidnappings and subsequent travel warnings have dented the country’s earning potential. According to the ministry’s statistics, there was a slight drop in the number of tourists in 2007 to 379,390 from 382,332 in 2006.
Yemen earned $424 million last year in tourism revenue, but Mr Bail said a hoped for 10 per cent growth set for 2008 would have to be reviewed after the warnings.
“Following these travel warnings, many tourists groups from these European countries want to come to Yemen but insurance companies refuse to give travel insurance while others ask for higher rate for insurance. People are afraid of being kidnapped by militants groups and thus we miss out on visitors’ cash,” he said.
It is not only attacks by al Qa’eda that have damaged a fledgling tourism industry. Local tribesmen also have seen tourists as way to leverage power. Over 200 abductions were reported countrywide between 1993 and 2000, according to government figures. Between Nov 2005 and Jan 2006, 14 European tourists were kidnapped. The last kidnapping case took place in May, when two Japanese tourists were taken hostage by tribesmen in Marib, and blackmailed the government into releasing some of their jailed relatives.
Most hostages have been freed unharmed, but in 2000 a Norwegian diplomat was killed in crossfire and in 1998 four westerners were killed during a botched army attempt to free them from militants who had seized 16 tourists.
“Every incident, whether it is kidnapping or militants attacks taking place in the country, affects us and of course, with variation in the scale of the impact,” said Abu Bakr Fada’ak, the owner of Qana’a Tourist complex in Shabwa province, a tourist hot spot.
“Following the Spanish tourist attacks, we have seen a 30 per cent drop. In the past three months, we have received three to four people [a night] compared to 60 per night in December last year,” he said.
