ASERIES OF TERRORIST attacks at home and abroad, economic slumps in Europe and North America and spiraling airline prices propelled by the rising cost of fuel caused Egypt to fall short of the anticipated 9 million tourists by a half a million in 2005. European and American markets were the worst hit, and the effect on Egypt’s tourist economy could have been much worse if someone hadn’t picked up the slack.

That someone turned out to be China, which produced 10 percent of Egypt’s visitors last year.

Ahmed El-Khadem, head of the Egyptian Tourist Authority (ETA), recently told Al-Ahram Weekly that developing markets like India and China, “Will become increasingly important sources for international tourism in the next 20 years. It is very important for us to establish ourselves within these markets.”

The World Tourism Organization agrees. Its statistics show that China is the fastest-growing source of outgoing tourists in the world with an annual growth rate of 30 percent. If current trends continue, by 2020 China could have 150 million outgoing tourists every year, making it the world’s fourth-largest source of tourists.

Here in Egypt, Chinese tourism is a fairly new phenomenon. Host countries have to be approved by the Chinese government, and tourists get permission to travel through the rather imposing sounding Exit-Entry Administration Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security.

Egypt was finally approved as a suitable destination for Chinese tourists in 2002.

Kim Piper Egypt’s tourism is attracting visitors from the Far East, with China being a key player in the market. The Pyramids and the Sphinx is a must see on the tours.

Since then, the numbers have skyrocketed, roughly doubling between 2004 and 2005 to 80,000. EgyptAir established a line to Beijing just over 18 months ago to facilitate the growing numbers. The route was shut down after only a few months due to the SARS scare, but was reopened last October with a special LE 2,700 promotion which ran through December. There are no current plans to expand the four flights a week, but an official at the airline told Egypt Today, “We’ve had an increase in both tourists and businessmen even after the promotion ended.”

At the Egyptian Tourism Federation (ETF), Mahmoud El-Kaissouni, who chairs the Ecotourism Committee, explains that Egypt is still adjusting to the fairly new Chinese market.

“The Chinese are a little different from our usual tourists,” he admits. “They generally only come in groups; we’re not seeing much, if any, individual tourism. Many of these tour groups even bring their own guides from China.”

The needs and expectations of the Chinese tourists are also different from those of the traditional North American or European tourist. “We [the ETF] received a complaint that there weren’t enough Chinese restaurants in Egypt. Most people come to Egypt and want Egyptian food, but these people want what they’re used to,” El-Kaissouni explains.

Food aside, the other specifics Chinese tourists request are easy to understand. Speakers of most European languages or even Russian speakers can go to nearly any tourist site in Egypt and find someone there who speaks their language. The same cannot be said for Mandarin, much less other Chinese dialects. Bringing their own tour guides may simply be a necessity: Serious students of Egyptology who speak any Chinese dialect are a rare commodity, though many companies are working hard to fill the gap.

Blue Sky Travel, for one, has been successful in recruiting Chinese-speaking Egyptians.

Chinese tourists also vary from their European counterparts in their choice of destinations. El-Khadem says it is unlikely that they will be looking for the resort atmosphere of places like Sharm El-Sheikh. Instead, he anticipates, “They will be looking for cultural as well as shopping tourism, and these are the most profitable kinds.”

Looking forward, the impact of the growing Chinese market on the tourism economy is based purely on speculation, but the importance of tourism to the overall Egyptian economy is no secret. As long as the number of Chinese tourists traveling abroad continues to grow, El-Khadem is certain that the numbers visiting Egypt will also climb also.

“Egypt,” he says, “remains the number-one tourist destination in the Middle East and the East Mediterranean as far as the number of arrivals and tourist nights are concerned. Egypt also tops the regional tables in terms of tourist revenue, which last year reached $7 billion.”

Tourism is only one part of a deepening Sino-Egyptian relationship that has left few sectors in Egypt outside China’s growing interest in the region. The last Cairo International Film Festival opened up with a Chinese martial arts film, House of Flying Daggers by director Yimou Zhang, and the Chinese delegation was selected by the organizers as the guests of honor.

Economically, China is fast becoming an important trading partner for Egypt.

“Bilateral trade is continuing to grow. The exact breakdown isn’t available yet for 2005, but we know that trade grew at least an additional $220 million last year,” reveals Gong Yufeng, the Information Director for the Chinese Embassy in Cairo.

A quick calculation shows that’s a growth rate of 21.6 percent over the last year. Total bilateral trade last year should ring in at the $1.5 billion mark when all the figures are summed later this quarter, though that figure stands heavily in China’s favor. In the first eight months of 2004, China’s exports to Egypt outpaced Egypt’s exports to China by a ratio of 6.5:1. Egypt’s exports are growing faster than China’s, however, and the ratio is steadily shrinking.

China is investing heavily in Egypt as well as the rest of the region. Minister of Investment Mahmoud Mohieddin signed an agreement last November with the Export-Import Bank of China for a $16.3 million loan to boost Egypt’s polyester production. The 20-year loan with a five-year grace period and two percent interest to upgrade a polyester factory was far too good to turn down.

As soon as someone figures out just how many Chinese companies and joint ventures there are operating in Egypt, the number grows again. The third district of the Suez Economic Zone has been the focus of many of these ventures, and officials there are working overtime to establish the infrastructure they need to attract more Chinese companies to the area.

Egypt and China also have several natural gas joint-ventures which are expanding to allow Chinese oil companies’ license’s to explore fields in Egypt.

Since its booming economy made it the second-largest oil consumer in the world, China’s interest in the Middle East has grown. China has offered aid packages, diplomatic support and a huge and growing market to several oil-producing nations including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. The oil companies are as interested in China as China is in them. According to oil industry estimates, almost half of the world’s growing demand for oil over the next five years will come from Asia. China will account for a full quarter of that growing need.

Money and politics are never far removed from each other, and China, with its soaring economy and permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, is a powerful ally in both fields.

Lately, the nation has become very involved in the major issues of the Middle East. China is a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause for an independent state, and even though it was a very vocal opponent of the US-led invasion of Iraq, the Chinese government continues to invest in the reconstruction of the shattered country.

Last year, Mahmoud Abbas, President of the Palestinian National Authority, was invited to Beijing by Chinese President Hu Jintao. A Foreign Ministry spokesman announced, “The two sides have signed agreements relating to bilateral economic and trade cooperation.” Palestinian Economy Minister Mazen Sinokrot has recently said that he is hoping for $5 billion in foreign direct investment in 2006 alone. His main focus is on the Gulf states, but doubtless the trade agreements with China will make up a large part of this year’s investments.

Egypt’s role as both a Middle Eastern, as well as an African, powerhouse has certainly contributed to China’s growing interest here. China is actively extending its influence in the world’s least developed continent, and Egypt will likely be hosting the next Africa-China ministerial conferences.

Foreign Minister Ahmed Abul Gheit, who was in Khartoum for an African Union session this month, told Xinhua News Agency that he wished to express “the Egyptian government’s appreciation of China’s role in the African region and its support of all projects adopted by China in its strategic program for development in Africa.”

After last year’s peace accord was signed between the Khartoum government, South Sudan received pledges of up to $4.5 billion in reconstruction aid. China was among the largest donors to the underdeveloped but oil-rich area. And no one has ever flown into Addis Ababa and not seen the giant “Ethiopian-Chinese Friendship Monument” right outside the airport.

Although China has been isolationist for much of its history, its growing economy and increasing need for oil have expanded its interests from the regional level onto the global stage. The nation has evolved from a producer of cheap goods into a leader in technology and innovation. Last year, the Chinese economy overtook France’s to become the world’s fifth largest. China’s current rate of growth is showing no signs of slowing down and has the potential to challenge the United States’ position as the world’s only superpower.

This could be years or even decades down the road, but it’s probably not too early to start the kids on their Chinese lessons.  et