The Saudi Commission for Tourism and Antiquities (SCTA) has said that it has imposed fines, some of up to SR10,000, on hotels and furnished apartments after summer inspections uncovered approximately 1,000 breaches of regulations. The SCTA also said it had turned down numerous requests to open similar facilities after inspectors noticed failures to comply with licensing conditions. The commission, meanwhile, has said that it hopes to find employment in the hotel and accommodation industry across the Kingdom for 15,000 Saudis through its program for the development of national tourism resources. The program, an SCTA official said, involves the provision of training in tourism and hotel management following the signing of memorandums of understanding with the Ministry of Labor and coordination efforts between the SCTA and a large number of private sector organizations. During Ramadan and Eid holidays, several SCTA teams carried out inspection tours of hundreds of hotels and furnished apartments in Jeddah, Makkah, Taif and Madina and observed several irregularities including high rentals not commensurate with the facilities provided. A commission spokesman, according to media reports, has warned these housing facilities to be more careful in future.
