Saudi Arabia will begin issuing tourist visas in the first quarter of 2018, its senior tourism official said, a first for the kingdom as it undertakes major economic and social reforms.
According to Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz "all government approvals" are in place for the launch of electronic visas next year to "all nationals whose countries allow their citizens to visit" Saudi Arabia.
"We are now just preparing the regulations - who is eligible for the visas and how to obtain them," said Prince Sultan, head of the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage.
The owner of a Jeddah-based tour operator said that guided tours will begin in February 2018.
The move to open up its tourism sector is a major shift for Saudi Arabia as Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman seeks to overhaul the kingdom's oil-dependent economy and shed its ultra-conservative image.
Apart from the millions of Muslims who travel to Saudi Arabia annually for the Hajj pilgrimage, most visitors face an arduous process and steep fees to enter the kingdom.
Saudi Arabia currently grants tourist visas for a limited number of countries, but even those applications involve restrictions, including requirements to travel through an accredited company and stay at designated hotels.
Prince Sultan said the cost of the new tourist visa had not yet been decided, but stressed that it would be "as low as possible, because we believe the cumulative economic impact is greater than the cash from the visa".
In recent months, the kingdom has broken with some of its most rigid rules - lifting a cinema ban, allowing genders to mix at a national celebration and announcing that women will be allowed to drive from next June.
Crown Prince Mohammed in August announced a tourism project to turn 50 islands and a string of sites on the Red Sea into luxury resorts.
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Antonio Muñoz Molina
Translated from the Spanish by Camilo A. Ramirez
Tuskar Rock Press (pp. 310)
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
At a glance
Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year
Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month
Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30
Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse
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Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances
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Christopher Celenza,
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Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
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Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
