The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) and the World Tourism Organization (WTO) have called on the UK Government to lift the current ban on UK-based airlines not allowing them flying to Sharm el Sheikh.
“Travel and tourism are vital to the economy and social peace in Egypt, accounting for 11% of GDP and 2.6 million jobs in 2015. The decline in the number of visitors has led to a huge destruction of employment. The main concern of the country is the despair that the lack of job opportunities has caused, especially among young people – men and women – and who have made them vulnerable to radicalization or flight in refugee boats “, emphasize the CEO of the WTTC, David Scowsill, and UNWTO Secretary-General Taleb Riffai in a letter to the UK Prime Minister Theresa Mei.
The ban is in force since a Metrojet airlines plane, which covered the Sharm el Sheikh – St. Petersburg route, crashed on the Sinai desert in October 2015.
“It is devastating to see the impact that current UK travel recommendations have on Egypt, especially among younger workers. We urge the British Government to review them and allow commercial airlines flying to Sharm el Sheikh to help revive tourism, GDP and job creation, ” Scowsill and Riffai conclude.
The letter also reminds Mei that the Egyptian authorities have taken important mesures to enhance security both at the airport and in its surroundings. And that the mentioned improvements are in line with the safety regulations of the UK Department of Transportation.
In addition, Riffai and Scowsill underscore all other countries, including Germany and Russia, have already allowed their airlines to resume flights to Sharm el Sheikh.
Image over the headline.- David Scowsill (CEO WTTC) -on the right- and Taleb Riffai (Secretary General of the UNWTO). Images © WTO and WTTC respectively.
