In a statement today, Red Sea Governor Amr Hanafy said that the decision does not seek to upset visitors to the governorate’s cities but rather to preserve the lives of citizens and tourists.
The governor ordered activating the banning decision, which has been issued since 2010, urging authorities to immediately deal decisively with violators.
As per the decision, violators face a penalty of up to having their jet skis confiscated, the governor noted.
Hanafy said jet skis cause catastrophic and dangerous accidents, stressing that the safety of citizens and tourists precedes everything else in importance.
The governor affirmed that he would not wait until a jet ski accident occurs in any of the Red Sea cities amid the current tourism boom witnessed by the governorate, especially Hurghada.
He affirmed coordinating with concerned authorities to launch campaigns on beaches and inspect water games to review maritime safety.
Egypt has exerted much effort over the past years, including boosting security measures to ensure the safety of tourists with tourism revenues regarded as a vital source of foreign currency for the country.
Egypt’s tourism sector had picked up momentum thanks to the return of Russian tourists to Sinai and the Red Sea governorate in August last year. However, the sector has been hit by the Russia-Ukraine crisis that started in February as the two countries are two main tourism exporters to the Red Sea area in Egypt.
In 2021, Egypt reportedly received around 7.6 million tourists.
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