RIYADH — Minister of Tourism Ahmed Bin Aqil Al-Khatib inaugurated Monday the Future of Hospitality Virtual Summit being organized by the Ministry of Tourism and the General Secretariat of the G20 within the program of international conferences held on the sidelines of the Kingdom's G20 Presidency.

Addressing the two-day conference, Minister Al-Khatib reviewed the efforts being exerted by the Kingdom along with the G20 to limit the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic on the world and accelerate the procedures for the recovery of the tourism sector, given that tourism represents the most important source of income in the world.

He added that about 100 million jobs have been affected by the pandemic since the beginning of this year, which required high-level coordination with the G20 countries and major companies operating in the sector to develop solutions to restore those jobs through smooth travel and health measures that ensure the recovery of the sector while preserving the health of tourists and workers in the sector.

The minister reviewed the Kingdom's experience in accelerating the recovery of the tourism sector locally, during the Saudi Summer 2020 season, which achieved impressive results, as the season included multiple destinations, and it carried many surprises for tourists from within the Kingdom.

For his part, the Secretary General of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Zurab Pololikashvili expressed his happiness to participate in the conference in Riyadh, praising the efforts being exerted by the Kingdom in the tourism sector.

He said that UNWTO chose Riyadh to host its first regional office, stressing that AlUla framework represents a road map for investment in rural areas.

It is worth noting that as many as 6,000 leaders, experts, and interested people worldwide are participating in the conference and more than 100 speakers from the leaders of the hospitality industry in the world. — SPA