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Saudi Arabia is diversifying and opening up its economy by developing productive sectors outside the oil and gas industry, and tourism occupies the centre stage of the country’s socioeconomic transformation agenda under Vision 2030.
The kingdom welcomed 27 million international visitors, up 56 per cent compared to the pre-pandemic levels while the number of domestic tourists reached 79 million, also up 56 per cent from 2019. It is investing billions of dollars in sports and culture to lure tourists and recently won the rights to the 2030 World Expo and 2034 FIFA World Cup.
Red Sea Global, the developer behind a major tourism destination on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast, is pulling out all stops to deliver on the kingdom’s new target of 150 million annual visitors by 2030.
Here, John Pagano, the CEO of Red Sea Global, talks about the company’s approach to regenerative development and ongoing work to deliver 8,000 hotel rooms by the end of the…