France and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have signed an agreement to enhance the tourism cooperation between the two countries, with the aim of developing the relations between the Kingdom and France, on the sidelines of the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to the Kingdom. The agreement was co-signed by Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb, and French Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade and Economic Attractiveness Franck Riester. The Saudi Minister of Tourism expressed his happiness over the signing of the agreement, saying: "I am pleased that France is our close partner in the development of our tourism activity. We already have a long history and a strong relationship, and this agreement will lead to strengthening our cooperation in the tourism field". He added: "France, through its knowledge and experience, will help the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in developing its tourism activity to attract investments with cost of $810 billion, which will provide the country with tourism opportunities outside the Hajj season. The Kingdom is expected to have new investment opportunities with cost of $6 trillion by 2030, and this is a matter of excitement". Both France and the Kingdom are seeking to enhance their tourism activity during the period of recovery from the pandemic and beyond, through a memorandum of understanding, which in turn consolidates cooperation between them as global leaders in the field of tourism, as the joint initiatives are expected to be launched between them to develop the tourism market and enhance coordination between the citizens of the two countries. The Saudi Vision 2030, launched by His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Chairman of the Council for Economic and Development Affairs, has made the tourism a key sector in the plan to diversify the sources of the economy away from oil, and France is considered as a world leader in the tourism field, while the Kingdom is the fastest growing tourism market in the world, and the Saudi Vision 2030 has provided a motivation for closer economic relations, and provided a range of opportunities for investment and trade with France.
