Egypt’s tourism revenue rose by 3.1 percent in the first half of 2015 reaching $3.3 billion up from $3.2 billion during the same period last year, Tourism Minister Khaled Ramy said Tuesday.
“The total number of tourists visited Egypt hiked by 8.2 percent during the first half of 2015, compared to the same period last year,” Ramy was quoted as saying by al-Borsa news.
Revenues from tourism, comprising 11.3 percent of Egypt’s gross domestic product (GDP), witnessed a sharp decline in the aftermath of the political instability following Egypt’s 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak.
The expenditure rate in H1 of 2015 reached $73.3 per person per night, Ramy said, adding that the number of the touristic nights also rose by 13.7 percent, compared to the same period of 2014.
Moreover, the touristic revenues recorded $7.3 billion in 2014 after $5.9 billion in 2013.
Tourism, Egypt’s second most important source of national income after the Suez Canal, provides direct and indirect employment to up to 12.6 percent of the country’s workforce, according to official figures.
“The inbound tourism during July surged by 4.4 percent, compared to the same month of the previous year,” Ramy said.
The number of Russian tourist visited Egypt in H1 of 2015 decreased by five percent while the numbers of British and German tourists increased by 12, 19.7 percent respectively, according to Ramy.
Tourism revenues reached $12.5 billion in 2010 and registered $5.9 billion in 2013; a 41 percent decrease compared to 2012, according to official statistics.
An estimated 4.5 million tourists, bringing in $3 billion in revenue, visited Egypt during the first half of 2014.
