Al-Kharji: A road map for tourism events and activities will soon be announced by the end of 2024
Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim: Cooperation with Qatar Tourism is fruitful and constructive.
The Qatari Hotels Association (QHA) held a meeting with His Excellency Mr. Saad Al Kharji, Deputy Chairperson of Qatar Tourism, along with his accompanying delegation from Qatar Tourism. The meeting aimed at discussing the current situation of the hotel and tourism sector in Qatar and enhancing cooperation between QHA and Qatar Tourism in a way that serves the growth and prosperity of the hotel sector, in the presence of His Excellency Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim Al Thani, QHA Chairman.
The meeting was also attended by Mr. Omar Al-Fardan, QHA Second Deputy to the Chairman, Sheikh Hamad bin Mohammed bin Fahd Al Thani, QHA Secretary General, and the founding members Sheikh Mohammed bin Faisal bin Qassim Al Thani, Sheikh Nayef bin Eid Al Thani, and Mr. Nasser Sulaiman Al-Haider, Mr. Nasser Matar Al Kuwari, CEO – Katara Hospitality, and Ms. Sarah Abdullah, Deputy Director General of the Qatari Businessmen Association, in addition to a number of executive directors of Qatari hotels.
At the beginning of the meeting, Mr. Al-Kharji praised the great role that the Qatari hotels played in the success of the World Cup, as well as the great role that the state played, whether through providing the infrastructure or the services and events that accompanied the success of the largest sport event in the world, stressing the necessity of investing this success to continue strengthening the role of The tourism sector and its effective contribution to the national economy. His Excellency also talked about a road map and a special agenda for the upcoming activities and events that will take place during the last quarter of 2023 and for the entire year 2024, which will be announced in an expanded meeting that includes the different stakeholders in the hotel and tourism sector.
During the meeting, The Qatari Hotels Association extended its sincere congratulations for the trust placed by His Highness Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of the state of Qatar, in Mr. Saad Al-Kharji as QTA Deputy Chairperson, hoping that this position will be the beginning of a fruitful and constructive cooperation between the two sides to develop the sector by activating the real partnership between private sector companies and Qatar Tourism to serve the national economy.
Fruitful cooperation
For his part, His Excellency Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim Al Thani, QHA Chairman, said that our wise government is keen to solve the challenges that the private sector faces and provide full support to be a true partner in the country’s economic development, believing that the tourism sector is among the promising economic sectors that creates growth and is a very important pillar in Qatar Vision 2030, calling the need for cooperation to overcome obstacles in the interest of Qatari tourism.
Sheikh Faisal also stressed the true partnership between the Qatari Hotels Association and Qatar Tourism, and that the first meeting is very constructive, and will be followed by other meetings that will enable putting the tourism and hotel sector on the right track and contribute to the development of the sector, highlighting the necessity of unifying the point of contact with Qatar Tourism to facilitate the communication between the different stakeholders.
Effective partnership
For his part, Mr. Saad Al-Kharji, QTA deputy chairperson, stated that the meeting with the Qatari Hotels Association is the first building block for discussing ways to develop the sector, indicating Qatar Tourism’s readiness to cooperate with various government agencies and ministries to resolve and overcome any obstacles, provided that there is a true commitment and partnership between Qatari hotels and Qatar Tourism.
During the meeting, most of the obstacles currently facing the tourism and hotel sector were discussed, and were answered by His Excellency Mr. Saad Al-Kharji, in full transparency, and it was agreed to continue meetings with CEOs and hotel managers during the coming period.
For his part, Mr. Omar Al-Fardan, QHA Second Deputy to the Chairman, appreciated the meeting outcomes, pointing out that the Qatari hotels played a distinguished role during the 2022 World Cup, confirming the importance of the tourism sector in Qatar Vision 2030. Al-Fardan stated that through joint work between the private sector and Qatar Tourism, both can reach all goals in Qatar Tourism Strategy, especially since the infrastructure in Qatar is ready, Qatar Airways is doing great work, and the state has made huge investments in order to promote Qatar regionally and globally.
For his part, Sheikh Hamad Mohammed bin Fahd Al Thani, QHA Secretary General, said that tourism is an important sector in Qatar and has proven its ability to host major international events, especially during the recent World Cup, stressing that there will be intensive work with Qatar Tourism during the coming period and developing a clear strategy for work. It will contribute significantly to achieving the desired goals of Qatar’s tourism strategy in the coming years.
Sheikh Hamad added that the Qatari Hotels Association is ready to work together with Qatar Tourism during the coming period to serve the growth and development of the sector.
During the meeting, Mr. Nasser Matar Al Kuwari, CEO of Katara Hospitality, stressed that Qatar has paid great attention to the tourism and hotel industry, which makes this sector promising in the future and can contribute significantly to the national economy. Al Kuwari stressed the importance of the State of Qatar’s investments in the global hotel sector through Investing in major global capital.
it is worth mentioning that the number of hotels and hotel rooms have witnessed significant growth in a short period of time, which is expected to reach 40,000 hotel rooms at the end of the current year, and the numbers announced by Qatar Tourism during the first 9 months are promising as a result of the growth of marine tourism and the arrival of a large number of cruise ships during the winter, in addition to the growth of Gulf tourism.
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