UAE to showcase its natural wonders to tourists

The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MoCCAE) will focus on encouraging ecotourism through arranging tourism trips and raising international awareness on the country's conservation reserves and desert areas.
Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, launched the National Ecotourism Project that aims to position the UAE as a leading ecotourism hub, on Thursday.
The ministry will work closely with local stakeholders, tourism agencies, embassies and national airlines to introduce the UAE's 43 protected areas - from wetlands to desert habitats - to the world.
Touristic visits will also be organised to these reserves to help protect the environment and implement sustainable practices across multiple sectors. Al Zeyoudi said protected areas in the UAE make up 14 per cent of the territory.
"Global travel and tourism trends in the last decade have indicated the emergence of ecotourism, a concept widely embraced by tourists who seek to leave no ecological footprint behind while travelling," he said.
He added that ecotourism and all nature-related forms of tourism account for approximately 20 per cent of total international travel.
The project will promote the UAE's ecotourism attractions in three phases that include the pilot phase where the ministry will make ample information and promotional footage available under the theme 'The UAE's Natural Wonders' to showcase the rich biodiversity across the country's 43 protected areas.
The ministry will launch a dedicated website and app in August to raise awareness of the protected areas among residents and visitors, and encourage travel agencies to include these sites in their promotional packages for the UAE.
The portal and app will serve as an information and visual resource that the UAE embassies across the globe and national airlines can use to introduce these attractions to the world.
The third phase will see the project expand to include the UAE's mountainous and sea attractions.
"The UAE seeks to leverage the fast-paced development witnessed in all sectors, particularly in the sustainable tourism domain that includes eco-friendly flights, hotels, beaches and campsites," said Al Zeyoudi.
He added: "In the next phase, we plan to update the website and app with geographic locations and detailed information on these facilities and services to assist travel agencies in organising eco-friendly tours. The success of this phase depends on the cooperation with government and private entities that will provide relevant information to the ministry to share with the public."
Last year, the UAE recorded nearly 15.87 million incoming tourists, a 6.5 per cent increase over 2016, with revenues amounting to Dh118.8 billion.
Reports predict that tourist traffic will continue growing in the coming years to a record-breaking 25 million between 2020 and 2021, coinciding with Expo 2020.
The MoCCAE is also collaborating with the Ministry of Education to arrange student trips to different nature reserves across the country and educate children on food security and climate change.
"There has been a great response of environmental awareness from schools and we are developing the curriculum to add environment and food security subjects," said Al Zeyoudi.
sherouk@khaleejtimes.com