UAE rakes in $5bn in H1 as tourists return, say officials

The United Arab Emirates’ tourism revenues surpassed $5bn in the first half of this year, officials said on Sunday, with a strong performance expected this winter when neighbouring Qatar hosts FIFA World Cup 2022.Hotel occupancy was up more than 40% on Covid-hit 2021, UAE Prime Minister and Dubai Ruler Sheikh Mohamed bin Rashid al-Maktoum said after a cabinet meeting in the capital Abu Dhabi.“Our tourism sector’s revenues surpassed 19bn dirhams ($5.2bn) in the first half of 2022,” Sheikh Mohamed said, according to the official WAM news agency. “The total number of hotel guests reached 12mn, achieving 42% growth, and we expect a strong tourism performance in this winter season.”Dubai, an established holiday destination, is expecting to host large numbers of football fans during the World Cup in November and December.Dubai is one of the Gulf cities operating daily shuttle flights to and from Qatar during the World Cup.Dubai’s airport, the world’s busiest for international travel pre-pandemic, handled 27.8mn passengers in the first half of this year, up more than 160% on the same period of 2021, it said last month.A quick vaccination roll-out allowed the UAE to bounce back quickly from the pandemic, enjoying a sharp uptick in visitors as Dubai hosted the Expo world fair from last October to March.Sheikh Mohamed said this year’s economic growth has exceeded 22% and foreign trade is more than 1tn dirhams ($272bn), compared to 840bn dirhams pre-pandemic.The cabinet also approved electric cargo aircraft “fully powered with clean energy”, and a new law aimed at increasing private-sector involvement in government projects. The law will encourage “the private sector to participate in development and strategic projects, increasing investment in projects of economic and social values”, WAM said.