London: More than Dh10 billion (Dh36.7 million) worth of tourism projects will be executed in the Emirate of Sharjah, including Khor Fakkan, Kalba and Dibba, a top official said, as the emirate plans to expand its tourism attractions.
These will be done in phases from 2010 and include the development of hotels, heritage areas, entertainment sites as well as mixed-use projects.
Sharjah currently has 109 hotels comprising 8,523 rooms that cater to a growing number of tourists to the UAE's third largest emirate. Billed as the Arab world's Cultural Capital, the emirate has 16 museums that help boost tourism including international tourism. The tourism sector contributes roughly 9 per cent to Sharjah's Dh72 billion GDP.
"Our aim is to grow the tourism sector by 5-10 per cent annually for the next few years," Shaikh Sultan Bin Ahmad Al Qasimi, Chairman of the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA), told Gulf News at the World Travel Market (WTM), which kicked off here on Monday.
"Although we currently have just the right number of hotels and hotel rooms, we need to have more hotels in future. Hence, the new investment will help the industry going forward."
He said the new projects will raise Sharjah's hotel room capacity by 50 per cent to 12,000 by 2012.
"Some of the new hotels will be managed by Sheraton, Marriott, Centro and Rotana," he said.
"We are constantly in touch with major hotel developers and operators to bring them together to collaborate on new projects."
Hotel occupancy
The new projects will top up the Dh40 billion worth of mixed-use projects that are being implemented in the private sector, including the Dh18-billion Nujoom island — a mixed-use residential, commercial and tourism project — the Dh15-billion Sharjah Marina — another mixed-use development being planned by Burooj Properties near Al Khan area — and the Dh5.5-billion Sharjah Investment Centre project.
Hotel occupancy in Sharjah declined 15 per cent during the first two quarters of this year due to the global economic slowdown. However, it grew four per cent in the third quarter, SCTDA statistics show.
"The summer months, especially July and August were particularly good for hotels due to summer holidays — our hotels have received more visitors," Al Qasimi said.
"However, as part of the global economy we are not free from the impact of the global economic slowdown. Yes, it has impacted our tourism industry. However, things are looking up and we expect growth next year."
Sharjah prohibits alcohol consumption. However, this has failed to dent the tourism sector's growth. Europeans remain the largest group of tourists in Sharjah.
"In fact, this has reflected positively on our tourism industry as we promote healthy living and promote Sharjah as a cultural, heritage and family tourism destination," Al Qasimi said.
"More than 33 per cent of our hotel guests are from Europe — our biggest tourism source market."
Sharjah has participated in 15 international tourism events, in addition to supporting 11 domestic events that are aimed at boosting tourism sector. It has renewed focus on the East Coast.
