Muscat: The GCC Statistical Center organized in Muscat today the eighth Regional Workshop on Innovation in Tourism Statistics, held under the theme "Innovation in Tourism Statistics: Data Integration and Trend Analysis". The workshop forms part of the Center's ongoing efforts to strengthen joint Gulf statistical collaboration in the field of tourism statistics and to highlight the economic and developmental role of the tourism sector across the member states.
According to Oman News Agency, the two-day workshop is being attended by officials and 30 specialists involved in the production of tourism statistics, representing the statistical authorities of the GCC countries. The workshop aims to introduce the concept and significance of integrating data and statistics from multiple sources, inventory tourism data sources and assess their suitability for statistical use, and understand the requirements for data exchange, including methodologies for linkage, matching, calibration, and reconciliation of results. It also seeks to evaluate the quality and consistency of produced statistics and to leverage integrated data for trend analysis and tourism demand forecasting.
Discussions throughout the workshop address several core themes, including the challenges of relying on a single source in producing tourism statistics, the tourism data source ecosystem, the legal, institutional, and technical prerequisites for data exchange, and integration methodologies that enhance the quality, consistency, and comparability of statistics across GCC states.
In her address, Intisar Abdullah Al Wahaibi, Director General of the GCC Statistical Center, affirmed that the tourism sector in the GCC countries is experiencing sustained growth and occupies a prominent position within national development plans and strategies. She noted that tourism statistics have become an indispensable tool for measuring the sector's economic contribution, analyzing its trajectories, and informing public policy, investment, and development decisions.
She further observed that tourism indicators reflect the scale of transformation the sector has undergone across the GCC in recent years, with its economic contribution growing at an average annual rate of 7.3 percent between 2019 and 2025, surpassing the global growth rate of 6.7 percent. She indicated that the GCC countries received approximately 75.7 million tourists during 2025, with inbound visitor expenditure reaching around USD 131.9 billion, while the total economic contribution of the tourism sector amounted to approximately USD 254.7 billion.
Gulf tourism has also solidified its position on the international tourism map, with the GCC countries accounting for approximately 5 percent of international tourist movements and 6.9 percent of global tourism receipts-a testament to a tourism presence in terms of value and yield that outstrips their share of tourist arrivals. This growth has coincided with an average implementation progress rate of approximately 73.8 percent toward the objectives of the Gulf Tourism Strategy through 2025.
It is noteworthy that the workshop will serve as a pivotal platform for several key objectives. These include facilitating the exchange of specialized expertise and practical experiences among participating entities, identifying existing statistical gaps and data deficiencies, and strengthening coordination mechanisms between data-producing authorities and data-owning institutions. Furthermore, the workshop aims to generate actionable recommendations that will enhance the quality and methodological consistency of tourism statistics across the region. Ultimately, these efforts are expected to support the formulation of more effective and evidence-based tourism policies, while reinforcing the sector's strategic contribution to sustainable economic development throughout the GCC member states.
