Description
“Sharjah was conferred the Capital of Arab Tourism Award for 2015 during the 15th session of The Arab Council of Tourism ministers in Cairo on October 18, 2012.
The Capital of Arab Tourism is awarded to a destination that meets specific criteria set by the Arab Council of Tourism Ministers, based on contribution to boosting tourism exchange between Arab Countries. The award recognises destinations that show how inter-Arab tourism is integrated into clearly defined strategies and objectives.
The selected country needs to demonstrate how it has enhanced and positively promotes Arab tourism destinations in international markets, alongside its inter-Arab promotional strategy. Other criteria include accessibility to the destination, variety of tourism opportunities available, importance placed on archaeological sites, the level of infrastructure, development and investment in tourism services, number of hotel rooms and regulation and licensing of accommodation in apartments and hotels. There is also weightage given to range of events and activities reflecting the heritage and culture of the destination. Other criteria include climate and natural attractions for Arab visitors as well as the ongoing development of new investment projects suitable for Arab tourists.
SCTDA is working with the industry, including Air Arabia, Qatar Airways, the accommodation sector, event organisers and other government departments to ensure that this coveted title would boost further development of inter-Arab tourism into Sharjah.
The GCC has always been a major market for Sharjah and this year SCTDA will exploit the opportunity offered through the Capital of Arab Tourism Award to widen its tourism footprint to new destinations within the Arab League.
The Capital of Arab Tourism 2015 award is a testimony to Sharjah’s unique tourism product that has been growing in reputation at the local, regional and international levels over the past decade. This award is even more significant considering that the Emirate is just closing the curtain on the award of Capital of Islamic Culture 2014 presented by the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
The award acknowledges Sharjah as a prime example of commitment to rich traditions and using its strong cultural heritage as a platform to build a modern tourism industry. The award is given to the emirate for its diversity in terms of leisure and shopping as well as its skills in hosting world-class festivals around the year.
The Arab League initiative reflects measures to promote tourism and regional cooperation with the goal of achieving uniform development across the Arab world. Sharjah now proudly picks up the responsibility from Erbil to continue the promotion and strong growth of Arab tourism in 2015.
Emirates Post Group, as part of its efforts to document and highlight local and global achievements and important occasions, has issued a set of commemorative stamps on Sharjah Arab Tourism Capital 2015, as postage stamps are a channel of cross-cultural communication, reaching different countries and peoples across the globe.
Price Per S.Sheet: AED 48
