Egypt's tourism minister, Ahmed Issa, has announced that the country has allocated a budget of approximately 3 billion Egyptian pounds (equivalent to $97 million) for the upkeep and restoration of ancient artifacts in the 2023-2024 fiscal year. Most of this expenditure will be self-funded through the revenue generated by admission fees for the different sites. Issa emphasized the efforts made by his ministry to boost the tourism sector, with a focus on enhancing visitor experiences. This includes the development of archaeological sites and museums, as well as the improvement of service quality.
The tourism minister of Egypt has declared that there are currently over 4,000 hotel rooms for visitors. The government is also focused on simplifying the investment process for tourism-related projects, particularly in hotel construction. This is to meet the increasing demand from tourists visiting Egypt. The country targets to attract 30 million tourists annually in five years. In the first half of 2023, approximately 7 million tourists visited Egypt, and the Ministry of Tourism anticipates 15 million visitors by the end of the year.
The Secretary-General of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, Mustafa Waziri, announced that the Greco-Roman Museum in Alexandria will soon reopen after being closed for renovation in 2005. The museum will showcase ancient artifacts, some of which have never been seen by the public before, including those discovered during underwater archaeological excavations.
Waziri also emphasized Egypt's continued efforts to recover antiquities stolen from the country. He revealed that over 30,000 ancient artifacts have been successfully retrieved in the past four years.