Tourism boost sees return of business in Bethlehem

Bethlehem: Azur Murad is opening a gourmet food store on Bethlehem's Star Street in time for Christmas, joining 11 other shopkeepers encouraged by Palestinian National Authority incentives to boost business in the biblical town.

"We want to bring special things here to make this street successful," said Murad, 52, pointing to cheeses from France and olives from Greece and the West Bank.

Her optimism is a sign of the rebirth of Bethlehem, where 80 shops — 12 of which opened this year —line the street that runs into Manger Square and the Church of the Nativity. The quarter was almost deserted three years ago following the second Palestinian uprising against Israel's presence in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, which led almost everything to close.

Boosting tourism in the West Bank is part of Prime Minister Salam Fayyad's plan to have all institutions needed to run and finance a state operational by the middle of next year.

In Bethlehem, store owners were encouraged this year by tax exemptions, the municipality's waiver of licensing fees and monthly stipends of $200 (Dh735) to those who took the steps into entrepreneurship.

"Bethlehem has a huge weight, culturally and religiously, and this is why it is an area receiving great attention from the Palestinian National Authority," said spokesman Gassan Khatib. "Tourism is one of the main sources of income for the future Palestinian state and for Palestinians now, and we are doing our best to utilise this opportunity."

The city has better-trained police on the streets and the sewage systems have been improved, according to the authority. President Mahmoud Abbas and his government have forsworn violence and deployed US and Jordanian-trained police forces throughout the West Bank to keep law and order.

The West Bank and Gaza Strip economies are both heading for growth of 8 per cent in 2010, up from 7.2 per cent in the West Bank and 5.4 per cent in Gaza last year, the International Monetary Fund said in September. The Tourism Ministry expects the industry this year to account for as much as 15 per cent of the Palestinians' gross domestic product, projected by the IMF to be about $7 billion this year. Tourism is up, with 1.45 million visitors to Bethlehem, 60 per cent more than in 2009.

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