up call as UNESCO rejects Old JeddahWith the summer holiday almost upon us, the decision by the Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) to crack down on extra service fees charged by hotels and furnished apartment operators, is most welcome. It has been found that owners are charging at least 10 to 15 percent extra on customers' total bills. The SCTA move serves multiple purposes: It helps to keep some money in the pockets of already hard-pressed consumers; protects the growing domestic tourism industry from crooks and ruthless operators; and ensures greater credibility for the industry internationally. There are tough penalties for violators of the SCTA's new classification criteria, which includes a SR10,000 fine for unlicensed operators and possible closure for repeat offenders. The SCTA's decision comes after it reclassified all the hotels and furnished apartments in the country, in a bid to clean up the industry. There was a realization that consumers, locally and from abroad, were becoming increasingly exasperated with the high costs, poor services and often unsafe and unhygienic conditions at many Saudi Arabian accommodation establishments. The tourism industry is becoming increasingly important for a country seeking to diversify away from oil and create jobs for its citizens. The SCTA estimates that the tourism sector, if handled correctly, will create 2.3 million direct and indirect jobs for Saudis by 2020. The SCTA forecasts that by 2014 there will be an expected 21 multinational hotels operating in different parts of the Kingdom. This will lead to the initial employment of 15,000 Saudi job seekers. With this expected boom in tourism, the last thing the authorities want is to have over-priced and sub-standard tourism products on the highly-competitive local, regional and international markets. The SCTA has itself acknowledged, just on Sunday, that while there has been an increase in domestic tourism demand, the quality of services provided, especially on the country's roads, is below par. There was also a major wake-up call a few days ago for the authorities here when the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) rejected an application by the Kingdom to have Old Jeddah declared a world heritage site. This is because the area is in such a ruinous state and has been so poorly managed. Tourism can certainly be a great source of income for this country, but this can only happen with affordable and top quality services and destinations. __
