Recent years have seen the hospitality industry suffer some serious setbacks, but global analysts agree that the sector is already showing signs of recovery. More than that, the hospitality industry is expected to triple in size within the next ten years, and become the world's largest industry by the year 2020 when (according to the World Travel and Tourism Council) travellers will spend an approximate US$ 5 billion every single day!

Some of this revenue is headed towards the Middle East , generally acknowledged as the world's fastest growing tourism market. Already, travel to the region enjoys a growth rate of 7.1 per cent per annum, and almost 68.5 million visitors are expected by the year 2020. More importantly, intra-regional tourism is forecast at more than 18 million travellers within the next decade or so. Consequently, career opportunities in the hospitality industry have opened up at a fantastic rate and the demand for skilled hospitality professionals is set to rise exponentially. In Saudi Arabia alone, government and private sector analysts predict an extra 2.5 million jobs within the next 20 years, while more immediately, the rest of the Gulf is expected to create around 80,000 hospitality related jobs within the next few years.

The momentum of this dramatic upswing in the hospitality sector is evident from the many high-profile infrastructural developments which are taking place around the GCC region. Work on major holiday resorts is well underway, and recent moves by the region's airline industry are all targeted at attracting international tourists by increasing regional appeal and augmenting intra-regional travel. The Palm, Jumeirah is Dubai 's latest hospitality venture, and one of the many developments planned in the location is a US$ 145 million, 1,200 room luxury resort. Similarly in Bahrain , the Durrat Al Bahrain and Amwaj Island projects are equally spectacular, as is the recently announced US$ 132 million Dream Island project. The rest of the region is not far behind and many sensational developments are either planned or underway in Kuwait , Saudi Arabia , Oman , and Qatar . According to industry analysts there are currently more than 10,000 future luxury hotel rooms either firmly committed or under construction across the region, in addition to at least 50,000 regular rooms which are expected to be finalized in the coming year. A recent survey showed that the number of hotels in the GCC increased to almost 1,400 as compared to about 1,000 last year. Similarly, the number of letting units grew to almost 190,000 in 2003 as compared to only 87,000 in 2002.

Also worth mentioning is the importance which regional governments are attaching to tourism and hospitality. The industry is not only a source of revenue but also contributes to creating much needed jobs. Governments are thus keen to sponsor and subsidize the training and development of skilled personnel on whom the future of the industry depends. The issue becomes even more critical as the shortage of reputable training institutions becomes apparent.