(AFP File PHOTO/KHALED DESOUKI)
The latest tourism report issued by the Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) showed that the rates of tourists visiting Egypt declined by 69.7% in September.
The statistical report indicated that the total number of tourists totalled 301,150, with the main drop attributed to the decline in the percentage of Europeans tourists visiting Egypt. The number of European tourists decreased from 421,539 in August, comprising 74.7% of the total number tourists, to 159,752 in September, which is only 53%.
The number of Arab tourists also dropped from 101,925 to 99,294 from August to September, while American tourists decreased from 17,887 to 12,031 during the same period.
In September 2012, the total number of tourists in Egypt reached 975,259.
The drop in the number of tourists has been consistent in recent months; in July and August 2013, tourist arrivals have declined considerably, by 24.5% and 45.6% respectively.
September’s decline follows the violent dispersal of supporters of former President Mohamed Morsi from Rabaa Al-Adaweya and Al-Nahda Squares on 14 August. This led to several countries, including Germany, Russia, France, Spain, Sweden and Italy to warn travel agencies to stop selling holiday packages to Egypt.
European countries such as Holland, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Spain and Portugal have begun to gradually lift the travel alert.
The drop in tourist arrivals has affected several companies, the latest of which is Orascom Development Holding, which announced a 13.2% decrease in revenues, from CHF 189.6m to CHF 164.7m, during the first nine months of 2013. The company stated that the fall in revenues was due to the declining tourism sector.
“With Egypt in specific, the group has endured two challenging years with the current political situation and its inevitable effect on the economy, with security and political uncertainty being the primary issues of concern for tourists and investors alike,” the company said.
Orascom Development’s profits in the hotel sector reached CHF 96.5m, a 7.6% decline compared to CHF 104.5m the company earned in 2012.
