Khaled El-Enani, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities of Egypt, met with Lutfi Rauf, Indonesian Ambassador to Cairo, and his accompanying delegation to discuss expanding bilateral cooperation in tourism and antiquities.
The meeting was also attended by Dalia Abdel-Fattah, Inspector General of the Department of International Relations and Agreements of the Ministry of Tourism.
The meeting discussed ways to increase tourist traffic between the two countries, exchange of experience in the field of tourism and archaeological work, as well as investments in new tourist destinations.
The Indonesian Ambassador highlighted the depth of relations between the two countries, expressing his joy that he took office in Egypt almost a year ago, during which he visited a number of tourist destinations.
He praised the beauty and diversity of Egyptian tourist destinations as well as the ancient Egyptian civilization. He also praised the stringency of precautions applied at Egyptian archaeological sites and museums across the country during the COVID-19 pandemic.
International flights to all Egyptian airports were suspended on March 19, 2020 as part of the government’s efforts to contain the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic. Inbound tourism only resumed on 1 July 2020 in three provinces as a first phase, namely the Red Sea, South Sinai and Matruh. Tourism activities in Luxor and Aswan resumed in early September 2021, and floating hotels were allowed to resume operations in October 2021.