(AFP PHOTO / KHALED DESOUKI)
Both the Egyptian Travel Agents Association (ETAA) and the Egyptian Chamber of Hotels (ECH) will hold a meeting with Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) Governor Hisham Ramez in March to request an exception from the decision to limit daily deposits to $10,000, and monthly deposits to $50,000, said a source in the Ministry of Tourism.
The official said that the bank’s decision to limit daily and monthly deposits is an obstacle for tourism companies converting the values of services provided to pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.
“We will ask the governor of CBE to exclude travel agencies from this decision. Last season, pilgrims reached 945,000 persons, which is a 13% increase,” the official said.
According to Ahmed Ibrahim, Bursar of the ETAA, the association had a meeting with Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb, and the issue was discussed. Ibrahim said that there is a great tendency to exclude travel agencies and hotels, due to the large daily and monthly exchanges that the agencies make with the people who deal with them, whether in the local or international market.
He noted that workers in tourism were notified that CBE understands the sector’s demands regarding exemption from the decision, and that they are waiting for it to be applied.
The Egyptian income from tourism amounted to $7.5bn, compared to $5.9bn during last year, according to the official.
The Ministry of Tourism hopes to raise the number tourists by the end of the year to reach 12 million, compared to 10 million during 2014.
According to the official, Egyptian hotels deal with international promotion companies abroad, adding that the Chamber of Hotels did not demand a specific deposit limit, whether daily or monthly, saying that it will be left for discussion with CBE.
