Egypt has signed a $68 million contract with New York advertising agency, J. Walter Thompson Co., to help revive the Arab nation’s tourism industry. Over the next three years, the company will run a public relations campaign in 27 markets around the world to promote Egypt as a prime tourist destination and improve the view of the country’s security situation, Al-Monitor reported on Wednesday.
The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism, which announced the three-year agreement in local news on August 23, has been handling promotion for the country since the outbreak of the revolution which dealt a blow to Egyptian tourism in January 2009. The June terror attack in Sousse, Tunisia, has also impacted Egypt’s tourism industry negatively.
Historically, Egypt has been one of the most stable countries in the Middle East, besides which the Arab nation boasts the Pyramids of Giza, ancient temples, museums and other tourist attractions. However, an increase in terrorist attacks associated with the Arab world in recent years has affected Egypt’s image.
“Improving Egypt’s tourism sector depends on improving the view of the country’s domestic situation, as many countries believe that Egypt has no security or stability for the time being,” Elhamy el-Zayat, chairman of the Egyptian Tourism Federation, told Al-Monitor Wednesday. “The biggest challenge for Egypt is to shift this perspective, especially since Egypt is the heart of the Arab world, which has now become a source of news of violence in the world.”
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