MOSCOW, April 16. /TASS/. The tourist flow between the BRICS countries may increase almost four times compared to 2023 up to 5 mln trips by the end of 2024, the press service of the Economic Development Ministry reported.
"According to forecasts, by the end of 2024, the roadmap steps will make it possible to increase the tourist exchange between the countries of the association to 5 million trips, taking into account the expanded line-up of BRICS. This is almost four times more than the indicators for 2023 - the tourist flow amounted to 1.4 million people," the ministry said in a statement.
The first meeting of the contact group on tourism within BRICS was via videoconference. In addition to the permanent member states of the association, new members - Egypt, the UAE and Ethiopia - took part in the meeting.
The Russian side proposed that the BRICS countries create a working group on tourism, as well as approve a road map for tourism cooperation from 2024 to 2026.
The meeting participants supported the Russian initiatives, noting that they will make it possible for the BRICS countries to improve communication between the tourism industries and increase mutual tourist flow, the Economic Development Ministry said.
Head of the department of multilateral economic cooperation and special projects at the Economic Development Ministry, Nikita Kondratyev, shared with foreign colleagues plans to hold the BRICS Tourism Forum in Moscow. It is planes that the first meeting of the working group on tourism will be held on the sidelines of this forum.
"The forum will bring together the largest representatives of the tourism industry of the BRICS countries and will allow companies to establish new business connections, and tourists to get acquainted with the tourism potential of Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, the UAE, Iran, Egypt and Ethiopia," Kondratiev said as quoted by in the ministry’s press service.