The participants in the extended meeting that held by the Hospitality and Entertainment Committee at Asharqia Chamber on Thursday, August 9, 2018, confirmed the support provided by the government agencies that are concerned with the hospitality and entertainment sector in order to upgrade the economic facilities operating therein.
They pointed out that it is a promising sector with a volume of about 127 billion riyals, with the local component contributing 32%. In fact, it is the second largest sector after the retail sector that can achieve nationalization options.
A major breakthrough
The Deputy Chairman of Asharqia Chamber and Chairman of the Committee on Hospitality and Entertainment, Hamad bin Mohammed Al-Boali, said that the vision of the Kingdom of 2030 focused on economic diversification by maximizing the roles and position of all productive sectors.
He stressed that the hospitality and entertainment sector is an added value in the national economy. It comes as one of the important pillars to achieve that goal, as it is a major contributor to the growth of the national economy and its contribution to the creation of employment opportunities for citizens, the stimulation of infrastructure and the development of services, as well as the revitalization of the economic cycle in various sectors.
He pointed out that the tourism sector alone achieved significant progress during 2017, with the total of incoming of tourism to the Kingdom of more than 18 million people with a total expenditure of about 98 billion riyals.
The number of recreational activities during the same year increased to nearly 2045.
The restaurant sector also achieved sales exceeding the 80 billion riyals mark. According to Al-Boali, the hospitality and entertainment sector is heading towards a major leap with the new government directions to increase the opportunities for its establishment.
Job fair for the sector
Al-Boali said that such meetings would contribute to the consolidation of the growing growth paths of the hospitality and entertainment sector in the Eastern Province and push it towards further progress and prosperity.
He pointed out that the meeting seeks to arrive at specific framework conclusions that will support the pioneers of the sector, as well as those who invest in it and push them to achieve a qualitative leap in performance.
He added, "We are moving across a single base in line with the vision of the Kingdom of 2030, which considered the sector as a key driver of growth and as a part of its strategy to diversify the economic base."
He pointed out that the Hospitality and Entertainment Committee is working on a number of projects in the service of the pioneers of the sector such as job fair, and Diwaniyah every three months in order to keep up with developments and work to deal with them.
They also provided a guidebook that enables industry leaders, both future investors in the sector and actual investors, to gain knowledge of all inputs and outputs of the sector.
Emerging enterprises
During the meeting, the participants presented the challenges faced by the entrepreneurs in terms of employment and recruitment, settlement rates and municipal regulations.
They called for the importance of intensifying efforts to assist the emerging enterprises in the sector, especially with regard to the conditions and standards that apply to the sector without taking the serious one.
They also called for the importance of linking recruitment to the commercial registry, as well as reviewing the competent authorities on the subject of calculating the period of six months to move in the system of Netaqat.
They further demand that there be binding procedures for the worker to continue working for at least one year, in addition to creating a knowledge mechanism that enables entrepreneurs to access the recreational projects offered by the municipalities.
They also asked for an electronic platform for the leaders of the hospitality and entertainment sector in the Eastern region to learn more about all the challenges and obstacles facing the sector, which expands the size of participation and display solutions at the same time.
The representatives of the hospitality and entertainment committee addressed a brief explanation of the committee and its mission and objectives, which it seeks to achieve and is part of the objectives of the vision of the Kingdom of 2030, such as the development and follow-up of the common interests of the economic establishments that are operating in the hospitality and entertainment sector in the Eastern Province, the dissemination of awareness and culture through holding workshops and specialized lectures, and discussing obstacles and proposing solutions, whether through visitation or having guest speakers of government officials or other successful experimenters.
