High achievers of the tourism and hospitality industry as well as the UAE media were feted at a grand ceremony last night as part of the fifth edition of the Sharjah Tourism Excellence Awards, hosted by the Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Bin Sultan Al Qassimi, Crown Prince and Deputy Ruler of Sharjah.

It was attended by HE Sheikh Sultan Bin Ahmed Al Qassimi, Chairman, Sharjah Media Corporation and Sharjah Media Centre, HE Sheikha Budoor Bint Sultan Al Qassimi, Chairperson, Shurooq (Sharjah Investment and Development Authority), HE Mohammed Khamis Muhairi, Director General, National Council for Tourism and Antiquities. SCTDA Chairman HE Mohamed Ali Al Noman and Director General HE Khalid Jasim Al Midfa received the dignitaries and guests. HE Sheikha Budoor Bint Sultan Al Qassimi, Chairperson, Shurooq received the first Tourism Personality of the Year Award for the significant contribution to tourism sector in the emirate.

Addressing the gathering, SCTDA Chairman HE Mohamed Ali Al Noman attributed the impressive growth and excellence in the tourism sector of the past few years to the partnership and collective efforts of the public and private sectors and the vision of Sharjah’s leadership. The STE Awards is an attempt to recognize and celebrate these collective efforts and initiatives by the public and private sector to promote excellence in Sharjah’s tourism sector during year 2012, he said.

“Sharjah has registered unique and successful landmarks of progress and human civilization on various fronts, from heritage and arts to literature, and from ideas and culture to growth in tourism, economic and service sectors. It is these strides of progress that have brought the emirate the well-deserved honours of the Capital of Arab Culture in 1998, the Capital of Islamic Culture for Year 2014 and the Capital of Arab Tourism for 2015,” said Al Noman.

He emphasised that all this would not have been possible without the vision and leadership of His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qassimi, Member of Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah. He said that Sharjah has always believed in the principle of partnership between the public and private sectors, which is a strategic choice to support the process of evolution and development, especially in light of the rapid growth of the United Arab Emirates in general and Sharjah in particular.

The SCTDA Chairman said that the STE Awards are a tribute to the continuing success of the emirate and its tourism sector and are aimed at encouraging excellence, improving quality of services and contribute to the development of the sector, in line with the emirate’s strategy to earn itself a prominent place on the international tourism map.

Al Noman said the hospitality sector is the backbone of the tourism sector and has witnessed tremendous growth in the emirate in recent times. “The number of Sharjah’s tourists surged to 1.73 million tourists last year, an increase of 11% over Year 2011. This is thanks to stable hotel occupancy rates and sustained growth of the emirate’s tourism sector,” he pointed out.

He urged all public and private sector players to excel themselves and put in greater efforts to meet the growing demands of the tourism sector. “These encouraging signs of progress today and challenges tomorrow call for even greater and concerted efforts to promote Sharjah as a tourism destination with a difference, not just in the region but in the world, which reflects in the number of accolades and awards that have come its way,” said Al Noman.

The SCTDA Chairman described the Sharjah Tourism Excellence Awards as part of the emirate’s strategy and its leading role in opening up communication between civilizations, and to promote the importance of this vital sector in the building of human relations based on mutual respect and appreciation.

Al Noman said that the new Tourism Personality of the Year Award, presented to HE Sheikha Budoor Bint Sultan Al Qassimi, is aimed at honouring the pioneers of this sector who left their distinctive imprint and have contributed to Sharjah’s successes, adding more brilliance to the image of our beloved emirate as Sheikha Budoor has.

Speaking on the occasion, HE Mohammed Khamis Muhairi, Director General, National Council for Tourism and Antiquities hailed the impressive progress Sharjah has made on the tourism front saying the Sharjah Tourism Excellence Awards is a key initiative to encourage excellence in tourism sector and to develop the tourism infrastructure and quality of services, helping in bringing the Sharjah tourism product to global standards.

Al Muhairi pointed out that thanks to the phenomenal growth of the past few years, the UAE tourism sector today enjoys the first position in the region and 28th globally and contributed 13.7% of the GDP or Dh182.6 billion in Year 2012. The tourism sector contributes 10.9% workforce to the labour market in the country and employment opportunities in this sector are expected to grow by 3.1% per annum during 2013 to 2022, he emphasised.

Al Noman thanked all Sharjah government departments and institutions and private sector players, hospitality industry and media for their constant support and cooperation in the SCTDA initiatives and events, hoping for the same in the future. The event was attended by a select gathering of heads and senior officials of Sharjah government departments, leaders of hospitality and tourism industry in the emirate and top editors and senior members of the UAE media.