The three large pyramids at Giza, built by King Khufu over a 30 year period around 2,550 B.C., are among Egypt's biggest tourist attractions. Egypt expects tourism revenues to rebound more than a third next year if the country's security situation improves in the wake of the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak in February. Tourism used to account for more than a tenth of Egypt's gross domestic product (GDP) before this year's upheaval, and also employs an estimated one in eight in a country where high joblessness fueled the anger that led to the uprisings. “We can get back to the 2010 figures of $12.5b in terms of income and 14.7 million tourists in 2012 if perceptions change. And perceptions won't change unless security prevails and calm is restored,” Tourism Minister Mounir Fakhry Abdel Nour told Reuters in an interview. Security across the Arab world's most populous nation worsened after the country's police forces melted away from the streets in late January and after Mubarak's ouster. But the newly appointed government said it would tighten security measures and beef up police presence in the streets. “The police now manning Cairo's streets,” said Abdel Nour, adding that security has always been good in the main tourist destinations across the country. Tourism is a crucial source of much-needed foreign currency for Egypt, and analysts say the country's most pressing problem is the slide in foreign reserves as tourism and export earnings suffer from the unrest and capital flees the country.
