The tourism and travel sector in the Emirates adds 26.4 thousand jobs during 2025

The latest data issued by the World Tourism and Travel Council showed that the tourism and travel sector in the UAE will add about 26.4 thousand new jobs during the current year 2025, bringing the total number of jobs that the sector will provide to 925 thousand jobs at the end of 2025 compared to 898.6 thousand jobs at the end of last year.

According to the council’s data, which the Emirates Today obtained a copy of, it is expected that the frequency of employment in the tourism and travel sector during the current year in the UAE market compared to the levels of 2024, where the number of new jobs in 2024 reached about 24 thousand jobs, noting that the tourism and travel sector takes a single job in every eight jobs in the country.

The UAE acquired about 12.3% of the total number of jobs provided by the sector in the Middle East at the end of last year, as the number of jobs in the sector in the region as a whole reached about 7.3 million jobs.

The Global Travel and Tourism Council expected that the workforce in the tourism and travel sector in the UAE will exceed the barrier of one million jobs in the coming years, which confirms the pivotal role of the sector in economic diversification and national growth.

The study of the annual economic impact issued by the Council showed that the tourism and travel sector in the Emirates will witness another record year in 2025, where the sector is expected to contribute to the amount of 267.5 billion dirhams in the national economy, which represents about 13% of the gross domestic product.

According to the Ministry of Economy and Tourism, the tourism sector in the UAE is witnessing steady growth and is one of the main engines of the national economy, as its contribution to GDP reached 13%, while it is expected to reach 14% at the end of 2025, with a strategic goal of reaching 17% by 2031.

According to the Ministry’s data, the revenues of hotel establishments in the country increased to about 45 billion dirhams during the year 2024, achieving 3% growth compared to 2023, while the hotel occupancy rate increased to 78% during the past year, which is among the highest rates at the regional and global levels.

In turn, the total number of hotels in the country reached 1251 hotels at the end of last year, and the number of hotel rooms increased to 216 thousand and 966 rooms at the end of 2024, an increase of 3% compared to 2023, while the number of guests of hotel establishments in the country reached about 30.8 million inmates, a growth rate of 9.5% compared to 2023.

• The high number of jobs will be provided by the tourism and travel sector to 925 thousand jobs at the end of 2025.

• 45 billion dirhams of hotel establishments revenue in the country during 2024.