UAE tourism sector expected to contribute 12% to GDP in 2024, UN tourism meeting told

The UAE's tourism sector contributed AED220 billion to the GDP in 2023, accounting for 11.7 percent of the overall economy, This upward trend is expected to continue in 2024, with projections indicating the sector will reach AED236 billion and account for an even greater share of the GDP at 12 percent.

Speaking at the end of the three-day UN Tourism 50th Regional Commission Meeting for the Middle East in Omani capital, Muscat, Khaled Al Midfa, Chairman of Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority (SCTDA), who led the UAE delegation to the meeting, said the tourism sector played a significant role in generating 809,000 job opportunities across various tourism activities and fields in the UAE in 2023. Projections indicate that the number of job opportunities will increase to 833,000 in 2024.
He added that the UAE Tourism Strategy’s ultimate goals seek to increase the sector's contribution to the country's GDP to AED450 billion by 2031, attract new investment in the tune of AED100 billion to the sector and welcome 40 million guests to the country's hotels by the next decade.