His Excellency Abdullah bin Touq Al Marri, the Minister of Economy and Tourism and Chairman of the UAE Tourism Council, held individual meetings with Her Excellency Patricia de Lille, the Minister of Tourism of South Africa; His Excellency Rodney Sikumba, the Minister of Tourism of Zambia; and His Excellency Blendi Gonja, the Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Sports of the Republic of Albania.
During these meetings, they discussed ways to enhance cooperation in various tourism sectors in the upcoming period and share the latest experiences and practices in sustainable tourism. These discussions took place on the sidelines of the “UAE-Africa Tourism Investment Summit” for 2025, hosted in Dubai under the theme “Building Bridges for Sustainable Growth,” which witnessed broad participation of over 350 leaders, ministers, senior government officials, and decision-makers, alongside investors and entrepreneurs from the UAE and 53 African countries.
Al Marri presented the “National Tourism Strategy 2031” for the UAE, highlighting its significant role in supporting the sustainability and competitiveness of the tourism sector by the next decade. This strategy includes ambitious national targets aimed at elevating the UAE’s position to become the world’s top tourist destination, increasing the tourism sector’s contribution to the national GDP to 450 billion AED, attracting tourism investments worth 100 billion AED, and welcoming 40 million hotel guests.
In his meeting with South Africa’s Patricia de Lille, Al Marri explored the latest global trends in the tourism sector and mechanisms for enabling sustainable growth. They also discussed opportunities for strengthening joint collaboration on tourism activities and the potential for creating new partnerships that enhance visitors’ experiences, as well as the future sustainability of the tourism sector in both countries. Notably, tourist arrivals from South Africa to the UAE reached over 178,767 in 2024, with around 55 weekly flights operating between the two countries.
The two parties addressed ways to maximize the benefits from the “UAE-Africa Tourism Investment Summit” to support mutual tourism investments and encourage new and diverse tourism projects across both the public and private sectors, thereby fostering economic growth and developing tourism infrastructure in line with the visions of both the UAE and South Africa in this vital domain.
In discussions with Zambia’s Rodney Sikumba, Al Marri looked into enhancing the benefits that the business communities in both nations could gain from the investment opportunities available in the tourism sector, aiming to expand economic partnerships and stimulate joint investments that support tourism infrastructure development and boost reciprocal tourism flows, contributing to the sustainable growth of this vital sector.
Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to building on the achievements made in various tourism areas to enhance their economic relationships and elevate them to higher levels of prosperity.
In his meeting with Albania’s Blendi Gonja, Al Marri explored ways to bolster cooperation between tourism companies in both the Emirati and Albanian markets, as well as enhancing bilateral efforts to launch new tourism and entertainment programs that facilitate increased exchange of tourism delegations.
They also highlighted the importance of collaborating to launch joint marketing campaigns in the near future, promoting key tourist sites and destinations in their respective countries to support the growth of tourist numbers and visitors to their markets.