Excerpt from the speech of His Highness Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah:<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cIn a relatively short period of time,\u00a0Ras\u00a0Al\u00a0Khaimah\u00a0has changed dramatically, from a quiet, agricultural town, where a formal education was hard to come by, to a thriving city with a diverse economy and great educational institutions.<\/p>\n \u201cOur Emirate, our people, our economy and our industries have been on\u00a0quite\u00a0an\u00a0incredible journey.<\/p>\n ECONOMY<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cIn\u00a0Ras\u00a0Al\u00a0Khaimah, if we can do something positive\u00a0for business, we do it.\u00a0Ask any of the\u00a013,000 multinational companies from over 100 countries that have set up here.<\/p>\n \u201cThanks to them, the volume of foreign investment in Ras Al Khaimah since 2000 has exceeded 15 billion dirhams, and there are more than 150 large industrial companies operating here.<\/p>\n We are\u00a0home to some of the world\u2019s most successful companies, including:<\/p>\n TOURISM<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe aim to increase tourism\u2019s GDP contribution to 10% by 2025. Already, the sector has been growing at a rate of about 19% year-on-year.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will have 1 million visitors by the end of this year in Ras Al Khaimah and we have a target of 2.9 million per year by 2025.<\/p>\n \u201cAt\u00a0Marjan\u00a0Island, our tourist hub, several projects are under way but there\u2019s scope for further development, both there and across Ras Al Khaimah, if we\u2019re to keep up with demand.<\/p>\n \u201cThat is why it is important that\u00a0Ras\u00a0Al\u00a0Khaimah\u00a0attracts more investors to our growing tourism sector.\u201d<\/p>\n TOGETHERNESS<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cWe\u00a0live in a dynamic world, where creating wealth, growth, can be good for us all. We are a family of nations.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen the UAE prospers, when Saudi Arabia prospers, Kuwait, the rest of the GCC and beyond, we all prosper. I see the growth of others as an opportunity for us, a chance to learn and make progress.<\/p>\n \u201cSaudi Arabia\u2019s incredible vision for its future, we hope that it is a resounding success because that would show the world the true image of Arabs \u2013 as thinkers, developers, achievers.\u201d<\/p>\n Taking place at the purpose-built AHIC Village in the grounds of the Waldorf Astoria Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, this 14th<\/sup>\u00a0edition of AHIC \u2013 the first outside Dubai – promises to address the critical issues of innovation, leadership, destination development and industry disruptors amid the macroeconomic outlook from the investors\u2019 perspective.<\/p>\n The event will attract close to 900 hotel investors, major developers, leading financiers, and C-level hotel executives to attend three days of content, networking and events, including live-on-stage interviews with some of the world\u2019s most respected businessmen and hotel leaders and the first AHIC Global Project Showcase, featuring hospitality investment opportunities from around the world.<\/p>\n His Highness Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Ras Al Khaimah has delivered the keynote opening speech on day 2 of the 3-day Arabian Hotel Investment Conference, (17 \u2013 19 April 2018). Held in partnership with Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority (RAKTDA), the 14th\u00a0Arabian Hotel Investment Conference […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3147,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3],"tags":[],"press_release_topic":[60,92],"latest_news_topic":[],"class_list":["post-2351","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-media-center","category-press-releases","press_release_topic-business-and-economy","press_release_topic-ruler-of-ras-al-khaimah"],"acf":{"header_desc":"","header_image":false,"pdf_file":false,"hi-res_image":false},"yoast_head":"\n\n
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