New national training program in Saudi Arabia seeks to support booming tourism sector

New national training program in Saudi Arabia seeks to support booming tourism sector

Saudi Arabia has launched a training program to develop skills in the tourism and hospitality industry, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Wednesday.

Titled ‘Tourism Pioneers,’ the program seeks to attract 100,000 young Saudis in preparation for the “booming tourism sector in the Kingdom,” according to SPA.

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On Sunday, Saudi Arabia’s tourism minister told AFP that the Kingdom is aiming to triple foreign tourism this year as COVID-19 restrictions ease, Hajj pilgrims return, and the first elements of the crown prince’s signature projects open.

An uptick in domestic travel in 2020 and 2021 - authorities tallied a record 64 million “domestic visits” last year - helped save the nascent Saudi tourism sector from collapse. Now Saudi officials want to seize more of the international market, Ahmed al-Khateeb said in the AFP interview

Ahmed bin Aqeel al-Khateeb, the minister of tourism, said the program demonstrated Saudi Arabia’s commitment to empowering young people by providing them with the necessary skills and opportunities to pave the way for the future of the tourism sector.

Some of the world’s highest-rated educational institutions have been selected to offer their services for the program, including Les Roches