traveling in Islaam

1. NEW DIRECTIONS IN THE TOURISM SECTOR:
ISLAMIC TOURISM IN THE OIC COUNTRIES
9th Session of Islamic Conference of Tourism Ministers (ICTM), 21-23 December 2015
Niamey, Niger
Maedeh Bon

2. Outlines
• Islamic Tourism and its
Components
• State of Islamic Tourism
in the OIC Countries
• Challenges and
Opportunities for Islamic
Tourism
• Concluding Remarks and
Policy Recommendations

3. Islam and tourism

4. Islamic tourism and its components
• Islamic tourism is mainly targeting people with Islamic beliefs
• Islamic Tourism has been used with different names in the tourism
theory and practice:
Halal Tourism/ Sharia’h Tourism /Muslim-Friendly Tourism
Major Components
of Islamic Tourism
Halal Hotels
Halal
Transport
(Airline)
Halal Food
Premises
Halal Tour
Packages
Halal Finance

5. Factors Affecting the Decision of Muslim Tourists
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
All Other Responses
Air Travel Experience
Air & Hotel Deal
Dining Food Experience
Adventure
Choice of Destination
Hotel/Resort Stay Experience
Relaxation
Muslim-Friendly Experience
Overall Price
Halal Food
12%
21%
28%
31%
35%
36%
37%
46%
49%
53%
67%
Source: Dinar Standard and Crescent rating, 2015

6. State of Islamic Tourism in the OIC Countries
EAP
12%
ECA
26%
MENA-GCC
38%
MENA-
Others
13%
North
America
2%
South Asia
3%
SSA
6%
Source: Thomson Reuters and Dinar Standard,2013-2015
• Muslim tourism market (excluding
the Hajj and Umrah) has increased
from US$80 billion in 2006 to $145
billion in 2014, corresponding to an
impressive increase of 81%
• Despite growth, Islamic tourism
remained as an emerging niche
market with 108 million Muslim
travellers, accounting for 10 to 12%
of the global tourism sector
• with an annual growth rate of 4.8%,
Muslim tourism market is growing
faster than the global tourism
market, which recorded a growth
rate of 3.8 per cent in 2013
Regional Distribution
Muslim Tourism Market, 2014/15

7. Major Source Markets for Islamic Tourism
Rank Country
Size
Rank Country
Size
(US $ Billion) (US $ Billion)
1 Saudi Arabia 17.8 11 Germany 3.6
2 Iran 14.3 12 Egypt 2.8
3 United Arab
Emirates 11.2 13 Azerbaijan 2.4
4 Qatar 7.8 14 United Kingdom 2.4
5 Kuwait 7.7 15 Singapore 2.3
6 Indonesia 7.5 16 France 2.3
7 Malaysia 5.7 17 Iraq 2.2
8 Russia 5.4 18 United States 2
9 Turkey 4.5 19 Morocco 2
10 Nigeria 4.4 20 Lebanon 1.9
Source: Thomson Reuters and Dinar Standard
Top-20 Muslim Tourist Source Markets, 2013/14

8. Major Islamic Tourism Destinations
83.8
73.8
72.1
71.3
68.2
67.5
66.7
66.4
64.4
64.3
0 50 100
Malaysia
Turkey
UAE
Saudi Arabia
Qatar
Indonesia
Oman
Jordan
Morocco
Brunei
65.1
59.2
55
51.1
48.2
47.5
47.5
47.3
46.5
46.2
0
50
100
Singapore
Thailand
United Kingdom
South Africa
France
Belgium
Hong Kong
USA
Spain
Taiwan
Source: MasterCard and Crescent Rating, 2015
Global Muslim Travel Index (GMTI):
Top 10 OIC and Non-OIC Islamic Tourism Destinations

9. On-going Challenges
Lack of unified and
global standards and
certification
Financial Constraints for
the Islamic tourism
industry
Gender related issues:
female employment in
tourism sector
Differences in the
influence of Islamic
values and beliefs

10. Opportunities
Potential
for
economic
growth
Innovative
tourism
products
Social
media for
marketing

11. Policy Recommendations:
At the National and the OIC
Cooperation Level
•Harmonization of policies and guidelines
• Sharing of expertise and experiences
Cooperation for making a positive image
• Organizing Islamic tourism events
Utilizing the media
• Designing long-term strategies and
master plans
At the Industry Level
• Ensuring Halal
• Training the staff
• Facilitating the access
• Paying attention to diversity
• Proper accommodation management
• Information about halal food
• Offering gender specific facilities
• Appropriate dress code for the staff
• Suitable marketing strategies

12. Thank you for your attention
Maedeh Bon
mbon@sesric.org