According to a report by Oxford Economics, Qatar is making substantial progress towards achieving 2.9 million visitors in 2023, with tourism playing a pivotal role in driving the country's non-oil recovery this year.

The report states, "Last year, Qatar attracted 2.56 million tourists, and we anticipate the number of visitors to reach 2.9 million in 2023. Data indicates that from January to April, there were nearly 1.5 million foreign arrivals."

Recent data from Qatar Tourism reveals that the country welcomed over 2 million visitors during the first half of 2023. Notably, international arrivals in 2023 have already doubled compared to pre-pandemic levels. In the first half of the year, air arrivals constituted 51% of all visitors, while land and sea arrivals accounted for 37% and 12% of the total respectively.

Qatar Tourism foresees the positive momentum of exciting events continuing throughout the year, with highly anticipated occasions like the Geneva International Motor Show, Formula 1, and Expo Doha 2023. Qatar Tourism Chairman HE Akbar al-Baker mentioned earlier that the national tourism strategy aims to welcome more than 6 million visitors annually by 2030.

The report underscores Qatar's flourishing non-oil sector, attributing its economic growth to around $200 billion invested in infrastructure, connected partly to the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and partly to the country's expanding population and long-term National Vision 2030 strategy. Furthermore, Qatar is emerging as a significant regional financial and educational hub.

Oxford Economics highlights the transformative impact of Qatar's investment and diversification strategy on the economy, leading to a doubling of GDP and exports in just five years. This strategy resulted in budget and current account surpluses until the 2015 oil price downturn.