Latest news with #SharifFathi
Egypt Independent
09-05-2025
- Business
- Egypt Independent
Egypt's tourism roars: 25% surge in Q1 2025, millions more expected
Egypt welcomed 3.9 million tourists during the first quarter of 2025, marking a 25% year-on-year increase, according to press statements by Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Sharif Fathi, CNN Arabic reported. The minister affirmed that this growth reflects the increasing confidence in the Egyptian tourist destination despite the geopolitical challenges facing the region. Tourism experts anticipate welcoming between 16-18 million tourists by the end of this year, particularly with the imminent opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum. This increase is a continuation of the significant growth in inbound tourism to Egypt, which recorded a record high of 15.8 million tourists in 2024, a 6% annual increase compared to 2023. This figure surpassed pre-pandemic levels by over 21%, according to press statements by Tourism Minister Sharif Fathi. The government expects the country to receive 17 million tourists during the current fiscal year 2024/2025, based on the 8.7 million tourists welcomed between July and December 2024. It aims to reach 30 million tourists by increasing hotel capacity to accommodate the anticipated tourist numbers in the coming period. This goal is supported by incentives and financing initiatives recently introduced by the state to encourage tourism investment, according to official data. Ahmed El-Tayebi, Deputy Chairman of the Tourism and Civil Aviation Committee in the House of Representatives, stated that the tourism sector achieved a record number of tourists in the first quarter of 2025 with a record annual growth rate, despite this period not representing a large proportion of total inbound tourism. He added that if the current rates continue, they expect to reach between 17-18 million tourists by the end of this year. The Egyptian economy achieved a growth rate of 4.3% during the second quarter of the current fiscal year 2024/2025, driven by a robust 18% expansion in the tourism sector, specifically restaurants and hotels. This growth outperformed the non-oil manufacturing sector, which recorded 17.7%, and the communications and information technology sector, which achieved 10.4%. In exclusive statements to CNN Arabic, El-Tayebi noted that Egypt has welcomed tourists from numerous Western European countries, including Germany, England, France, and Spain. From Eastern Europe, significant numbers of tourists have arrived from Russia, Poland, and Romania. He anticipates that inbound tourism to the country will exceed last year's figures by 10-15%, highlighting that Red Sea destinations such as Makadi, Sahl Hasheesh, Safaga, and Marsa Alam attract the largest share of tourists, along with Cairo and its numerous archaeological sites. He pointed to several reasons for the increase in tourist arrivals to Egypt, most notably the development of infrastructure, including new roads, axes, and an electric transportation network, which has facilitated easier travel between various tourist destinations, thereby increasing the number of tourist nights. Additionally, plans to increase hotel capacity by adding 40,000-50,000 rooms this year, representing a 20% annual increase, as well as marketing strategies for Egyptian tourist destinations, are contributing to reaching the target of 30 million tourists by 2030. More than 15 million tourists spent 156.6 million nights in Egypt during 2024, and this figure is projected to continue rising to 182.6 million nights by 2028, according to a report by Fitch Solutions. El-Tayebi highlighted the significant role of the Grand Egyptian Museum's opening on July 3rd in marketing and promoting Egyptian tourism internationally. He noted the state's commitment to a global inauguration ceremony with the participation of presidents and princes from numerous countries worldwide. This event is expected to significantly spotlight the museum, alongside the notable development in the air transport sector through the opening of airports and the improvement of the road and transportation network. Magdy Sadek, a member of the Travel Agencies Chamber at the Egyptian Tourism Federation, stated that European tourism accounted for the largest share of inbound tourism to Egypt during the first quarter of 2025, led by German, Italian, Spanish, and French nationalities. Egypt also welcomed tourists from Gulf countries, most notably Saudi Arabia. In exclusive statements to CNN Arabic, Magdy Sadek anticipated that Egypt would receive 16 million tourists during the current year, relying on the increase in the country's hotel capacity to exceed 220,000 rooms. He also mentioned the implementation of new regulations and requirements for licensing vacation apartment units, which could potentially raise the country's hotel capacity to around half a million rooms. The opening of the Grand Egyptian Museum is also expected to play a crucial role in showcasing Egyptian civilization, making it the primary destination for those seeking to explore its secrets. Last month, the Egyptian government, for the first time, established new regulations and requirements for licensing vacation apartment units to introduce a new type of accommodation for tourists. Vacation apartment units are defined as 'any unit consisting of at least one room, a suite, or a villa located in a standalone building or part of a building, providing some basic services, and prepared to receive Egyptians or foreigners, provided that it is located in a tourist area or within a distinguished residential complex.'
Yahoo
08-05-2025
- Yahoo
Archaeologists Were Excavating the Site of Two Ancient Forts—And Found a THIRD Ancient Fort
Archaeologists uncovered a third major ancient fort in the northern Sinai Peninsula. The Tell Abu Seifi site offered prime protection of Egypt's eastern border. Limestone-paved roads and a moat were part of the new discovery. The military significance of the Athar region of North Sinai may have pre-dated Ptolemaic-era and Roman-era fortresses already uncovered at the Tel Abu Seifi archaeological site. We know this thanks to the discovery of what is likely a third—and older—defensive structure for Egypt's 'fortress of the east.' According to a translated statement from Egypt's Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Egyptian Archaeological Mission of the Supreme Council of Antiquities uncovered not only fresh clues about the way of life at the site during the Ptolemaic and Roman occupation, but also the remains of a third military fortification. During the excavation, D. Hisham Hussein, head of the mission and director of the General Administration of Sinai Antiquities, said the presence of a moat led archaeologists to discover four pillars of a fort. Those pillars are now being dated, but the team believes the new find is older than the two forts already known to have existed on the site, one dated to the Ptolemaic era from 332 to 30 B.C. and the other from Roman rule during 30 B.C. to 395 A.D. Sharif Fathi, minister of Tourism and Antiquities, said the fresh discovery shows the secrets of eastern military fortresses of Egypt over multiple centuries, and the importance of the location as a military and industrial center throughout time. When the Nile shifted course, Tell Abu Seifi rose in defensive prominence, overtaking the role of Tell Hebua as the fortress of the east. The additional information also more fully maps the Egyptian defenses on its eastern border, said Mohamed Ismail Khaled, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, reaffirming that Sinai was once Egypt's eastern gateway and its first military stronghold. Alongside the fort, the mission uncovered housing units, the eastern gates of the two known forts, a limestone road, and remnants of industry. The team believes that the newly found mixture of interconnected rectangular buildings near the third fort were likely used as living quarters for soldiers and then reused over time. The mission uncovered the distinctive design of the eastern gates of the two known forts, helping show the shape of the entrances. The team also found a more than six-foot-deep moat at the entrance to one of the forts, an element of defensive strategy. What may not have been so defensive was a road—36 feet wide and over 328 feet long—that led from the outside of the eastern gate of the Roman-era fort to the heart of the residential portion of the site. The road was paved with limestone tiles and covered an older path underneath it, which also included limestone, likely from the Ptolemaic era. Along the side of the road were more than 500 clay planting circles carefully arranged in rows, likely holes for trees to adorn the fort's entrance and the soldiers' dwellings. Mohammed Abdel-Badii, head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector, said this find tells the story of daily life, especially when the site housed soldiers during the reigns of emperors Diocletian and Maximian from the third century A.D. At some point near the end of Roman rule, the military stronghold turned more industrial, the team believes, thanks to the discovery of four large kilns used to produce quicklime. The switch from military-first to industry also coincided with the destruction of earlier stone structures at the site. You Might Also Like The Do's and Don'ts of Using Painter's Tape The Best Portable BBQ Grills for Cooking Anywhere Can a Smart Watch Prolong Your Life?
Egypt Independent
25-04-2025
- Business
- Egypt Independent
Almost 2 million visit ‘On Top of the Pyramid' Exhibition in Shanghai
Egyptian Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, Sharif Fathi, received Liu Duo, the Deputy Mayor of Shanghai Municipality in the People's Republic of China, and her accompanying delegation at the ministry's headquarters in the government district of the New Administrative Capital. The meeting took place during their current visit to Egypt and was attended by Moamen Othman, Head of the Museums Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Chu Xiaobo, Director of the Shanghai Museum, and a number of ministry leaders and representatives from Shanghai Municipality and the Shanghai Museum. Duo reviewed the results of the 'On Top of the Pyramid: The Civilization of Ancient Egypt' exhibition currently held at the Shanghai National Museum, highlighting its success and the large turnout of visitors, which prompted the museum to extend the exhibition's operating hours into the evening. She pointed out that the exhibition has received more than 1.9 million visitors since its opening in July 2024, with attendees coming not only from Shanghai but also from various neighboring Chinese cities. She added her expectation that the number of visitors to the exhibition will reach 2.5 million by the end of its run next August, expressing her hope for broader horizons of cooperation between the two countries in the coming period. The minister then reviewed the volume of tourist traffic arriving in Egypt from China, expressing his aspiration to further promote this traffic from this important market by strengthening joint cooperation mechanisms and opening broader horizons in the fields of tourism and antiquities through several avenues, including adopting the idea of establishing temporary antiquities exhibitions and increasing the number of joint promotional campaigns. The two sides also discussed the possibility of cooperation in the fields of museums, training, archaeological excavations, scientific research, and the exchange of expertise. The Chinese side expressed its hope to increase the number of archaeological missions working in Egypt. Recently, a new joint archaeological mission between the Supreme Council of Antiquities and the Shanghai Museum began work at the Sekhmet Temple in the Mit Rahina archaeological area, as did the joint mission of Peking University with the Supreme Council of Antiquities, which will work at the Tell el-Aziz site in Mit Rahina. This is in addition to the existing archaeological missions, including the missions at the Montu Temple in Karnak and the Shanghai University of Science and Technology working in Saqqara on the digital documentation project of coffins.
Egypt Independent
14-03-2025
- Business
- Egypt Independent
Royal cemetery from Second Intermediate Period and pottery workshop discovered in Sohag
The Egyptian-American archaeological mission from the University of Pennsylvania discovered a royal tomb from the Second Intermediate Period in the 'Jabal Anubis' necropolis in Abydos. The Egyptian archaeological mission from the Supreme Council of Antiquities also discovered a complete Roman-era pottery workshop in the village of Banawit. Sharif Fathi, the Minister of Tourism and Antiquities, confirmed that the announcement of these two new discoveries in Sohag Governorate will not only promote the tourism diversity that the Egyptian tourist destination enjoys and introduce the world to the ancient Egyptian civilization, but also help researchers in their research work and highlight one of the roles of the Supreme Council of Antiquities as a scientific institution. It also reflects the Ministry's attention to both foreign and Egyptian archaeological missions in various archaeological sites across the Republic, in revealing more of the secrets and history of ancient Egyptian civilization. For his part, Mohamed Ismail Khaled, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, emphasized the importance of these two discoveries, as the discovery of the royal tomb in Abydos provides new scientific evidence of the development of royal tombs in the 'Jabal Anubis' necropolis, which dates back to the era of the 'Abydos Dynasty,' a series of kings who ruled in Upper Egypt between 1700-1600 BC. It also adds new information to the kings of this dynasty and a deeper understanding of the complex political history of the Second Intermediate Period in Egypt. As for the discovery of the pottery workshop in Banawit, it indicates that this workshop was one of the largest factories that supplied the ninth region with pottery and glass, as it contains a large group of kilns, spacious warehouses for storing vessels, and a set of 32 ostraca in Demotic script and Greek language that explain the commercial transactions at that time and the method of paying taxes. Mohamed Abdel Badie, head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said that studies conducted on the royal tomb in Abydos indicate that it belongs to one of the kings preceding King Seneb Kay, whose tomb was discovered in Abydos by the mission in 2014, and that it is much larger than other previously known tombs attributed to the 'Abydos Dynasty,' noting that the name of the tomb's owner has not yet been identified. Joseph Wegner, head of the Egyptian-American mission working in Abydos, stated that the royal tomb was found at a depth of about 7 meters below ground level, and consists of a burial chamber made of limestone, covered with mud-brick vaults originally reaching about 5 meters high. It also contains remains of inscriptions on both sides of the entrance leading to the burial chamber of the goddesses Isis and Nephthys, with yellow script bands that once bore the king's name in hieroglyphs. The style of the decorations and texts is similar in its style to those previously discovered in the tomb of King Seneb Kay. Wegner added that the mission will conduct further research and study in the coming period to determine the tomb's date precisely. The Jabal Anubis necropolis is one of the most important necropolises in the Abydos area. It is a royal necropolis, and the mountain there takes the shape of a pyramid, which is why King Senusret III (1874-1855 BC) chose it to build his massive tomb beneath that natural pyramidal peak, in a precedent that was the first of its kind in Egyptian civilization. It was also chosen by a number of kings of the Thirteenth Dynasty, and after them, the kings of the 'Abydos Dynasty,' who built their tombs in the depths of the desert near the mountain, the most famous of which is the tomb of King Seneb Kay, which is considered the oldest decorated royal tomb in ancient Egypt. Abdel Badie clarified that studies and initial evidence conducted at the pottery workshop site in Banawit village indicate that the site was used during the Byzantine era. The site was also reused as a cemetery in the seventh century AD, and its use possibly extended to the fourteenth century AD. A group of burials and mud-brick tombs were found at the site, containing skeletal remains and mummies, which are likely family tombs for men and women, with the majority of these burials being children. The most prominent of these burials is a child's mummy in a sleeping position with a colored fabric cap on his head, and a skull of a woman in her thirties. Also, some roots of wheat plants and remnants of ancient plant seeds, including doum palm and barley, were discovered.
