BAGHDAD – Officials from the Kurdistan Region and Iraq attended a tourism forum in Baghdad with the hopes of boosting domestic travel and developing the industry across the country.
The two-day Iraqi Tourism Forum wrapped up in Baghdad on Wednesday. More than 700 foreign and local companies took part, including at least 50 from the Kurdistan Region.
Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG)’s Minister for Municipalities and Tourism Newroz Mawlood attended the forum with a Kurdish delegation, saying the Kurdistan Region will benefit if the tourism industry improves across Iraq.
If the two governments coordinate, "the tourism sector will start to develop in Iraq as a whole and the Kurdistan Region in particular,” she said.
Her presence in Baghdad, in the company of tour operators from all four provinces of the Kurdistan Region, shows how keen they are, she added.
The Iraqi forum comes on the heels of the Middle East Tourism Expo, which was held in Erbil last week. Some 250 companies from 20 countries took part in the four-day event.
The Kurdistan Region broke into the global tourism scene with its ‘The Other Iraq’ marketing campaign that introduced the world to the unique culture and environment of Kurdistan, while stressing its security. The KRG hopes to double its tourism sector by 2025.
Emerging from years of conflict, Iraq is now hoping to attract visitors from the Kurdish north and beyond.
"We have opened our doors for tourists to travel to the Region and we hope to see our brothers from the Kurdistan Region tour the central and southern provinces of Iraq as the people from these areas visit the Kurdistan Region," said Iraq’s Minister of Culture Abdulameer al-Hamdani.
For Kurds planning a holiday, southern or central Iraq is rarely considered an option. After decades of conflict and animosity, many Kurds have never seen Iraq’s cities, venturing south only for business or administrative matters.
Hamdani said they are working to "restore trust and unity among the two nations of Iraq."
"This is all to serve Iraq," he said.
Iraq receives millions of visitor annually, predominantly pilgrims visiting holy sites like the city of Najaf.
Reporting by Mustafa Goran