Tourism Minister Hesham Zaazou said on Monday that the sector's revenues declined by 66 percent, bringing in US$1.9 billion during the first half of the 2013/14 fiscal year.
Zaazou and Finance Minister Hani Qadri met to discuss methods of support to the sector so that it can overcome the current phase through several urgent measures.
Zaazou highlighted the importance of the tourism sector, which not only employs many workers, but also yields foreign currency.
Several other services and industries are directly related to the growth of the tourism sector, which could affect economic performance and growth in Egypt greatly.
The minister reviewed a plan by the ministry to promote the sector and increase the number of tourists, especially from new non-traditional markets.
He also talked about the plan to turn to eco-tourism in order to boost the sector's competitiveness inter
The year 2013 was the worst for tourism in Egypt since the January revolution after many Western governments issued travel bans to most tourist destinations in the wake of the ouster of deposed President Mohamed Morsy.
