CAIRO, Jan. 22 (Xinhua) -- Egypt received a record number of 14.9 million tourists in 2023, beating the previous record of 14.7 million in 2010, Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities reported in a statement on Monday.
Egypt's share of global tourism hit 1.2 percent in 2023, up from 0.9 percent in 2019, registering an increase of 33 percent over four years, the statement quoted Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Ahmed Issa as saying.
The minister said Egypt aims to increase incoming tourists by 25-30 percent annually.
He added that Egypt plans to partner with the private sector to boost investments, increasing the room capacity to accommodate 30 million tourists by 2028.
The tourism sector is one of the main sources of foreign currency for Egypt, accounting for around 12 percent of the GDP and employing about 3 million Egyptians.
