Kuwaiti minister sees link between tourism growth and development
Gulf has the potential to morph into tourist hotspots
We have the educated, writers and partisans who form the cultural sea in Kuwait, and the waves of this sea are rising today, and expressions among Kuwaitis are beginning to deviate from the familiar. We were deprived of the etiquette of dialogue by those who are supposed to teach people the etiquette of dialogue. Additionally, politicians and members of elected councils competed and struggled, with each claiming the right for themselves and hurling falsehoods at their opponents. Then the government inserted itself into the picture, completing the scene.
Kuwaiti society was divided between loyalty and boycott, and individuals holding knives were summoned from each side, initiating a divisive process as each side believed they were right and the other corrupted or hired. The rift increased, with each side turning their back on the other, and distances between them growing every day, making it difficult for them to hear one another.
Today, there is a third party in Kuwait, and I hope to be a part of it, as I hope you are too. It is a party whose members do not believe they are on the right side; rather, they look for it in every corner. A party whose members are ready to listen to the other and have the desire to help both sides lay down their knives and change their directions to come closer and hear each other, recognizing that hate only breeds more hatred.
There is optimism today that the fad has passed, and the idea has arrived. It is wrong to categorize any side as victorious because when it comes to homeland issues, we are all either victorious or defeated. I hope people calm down, and many Kuwaitis become more reluctant to scream and doubt, allowing each side to understand the other and uphold the democratic and freedom process that Kuwait is characterized by.
Many are talking today about the start of national reconciliation, which will be the title of “The New Kuwait Book”, envisioning the Kuwait of the future. The Kuwait of the future in which our grandchildren will live securely. Despite our happiness with the laughter of our grandchildren, we quickly become concerned for them, as our present, as you see and as revealed by numbers from the World Bank and local and international reports, is a very lackluster present. We did not prepare for them what makes them secure in their future.
Anyone who believes that the right is on their side will be part of the problem, as each side has a piece of the benefit, and when they join together, the interest becomes complete. Holders of knives and beneficiaries are asked today to rethink because they have an interest in protecting their grandchildren. It is not with money alone that a person becomes happy, and if the homeland is lost, there will be no value for a person, even if they wear the best clothes and live in a palace.
Man is the homeland, and whoever loses their homeland will find themselves looking for something more valuable than themselves. If it were not for the hope to return home one day, those who lost their homeland would die in misery and sadness. Let us build our new homeland as the country’s celebrations approach. This is Kuwait!
DOHA: Tourism growth is often a precursor to broad development and prosperity, Kuwait’s Information Minister Abdulrahman Al-Mutairi said on Monday, citing the sector as among the most pivotal sources of national income. Thanks in part to their “rich cultural heritage” and “diverse landscapes,” Gulf Arab states have the potential to morph into tourist hotspots with the ability to beguile visitors from across the globe, the Kuwaiti minister told a Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)-wide gathering of tourism ministers in the Qatari capital.
Any measure aiming to develop the tourism industry across GCC states enjoys the full backing of these countries’ political leaders, the minister underlined, pointing out that a pan-GCC strategy to develop the region’s tourism industry should keep the number of tourist arrivals in the region on an upward trajectory.
Having welcomed some 100 million visitors recently, he singled out Saudi Arabia as a regional success story in terms of tourism growth, while he acknowledged neighboring Qatar’s achievement in hosting global events such as the World Cup. Echoing the Kuwaiti minister’s sentiments, the Riyadh-based bloc’s chief, Jasim Al-Bedaiwi, said the tourism industry forms an “integral component” of economic growth and development, agreeing that the “pivotal sector” is key to national development plans.
On recent initiatives introduced, the GCC chief mentioned a unified visa scheme within the six-member bloc as among the endeavors aiming to propel the tourism industry to greater levels, saying he expected similar moves to follow suit. Saudi Arabia and Qatar’s top tourism
officials, Ahmad Al-Khatib and Saad Al-Kharji, respectively, attached equal significance to the crucial sector, agreeing that growth there invariably leads to national development. — KUNA