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ABU DHABI / WAM
The Department of Culture and Tourism — Abu Dhabi has continued its strategic support for the hospitality industry by conducting a second series of workshops as part of the rollout for the ‘Ghadan 21’ government accelerator programme.
The workshops hosted leaders from all of Abu Dhabi’s hotels to help bring the hospitality industry up to speed on the application of new rules regarding the collection of reduced Municipality fees and Tourism fees, said a DCT press release issued on Sunday.
The reduction in fees is part of a tactical plan to increase the appeal of the emirate for overseas visitors. The workshops followed the inaugural sessions earlier in the year which covered the responsibilities of hotels to bear the cost of municipality fees during a transition period.
Under the new rules, tourism fees for hotels and restaurants have been reduced from 6 percent to 3.5 percent, municipality fees for hotels and restaurants from 4 percent to 2 percent, and daily municipality fees for each hotel room from as much as AED15 to AED10, the statement added.
The workshops also form part of a wider programme of support organised by DCT Abu Dhabi for the hospitality sector, which includes regular Industry Development Committee meetings, which provide a forum for stakeholders to coordinate strategically across the emirate.
The Department of Culture and Tourism also acts as an emirate-wide facilitator and regulator for the sector.
The recent workshops also covered the scope of the new system’s application, and DCT Abu Dhabi employees answered questions on its implementation and the mechanism and rules for compensating all hotel and tourism establishments for the transitional period in applying the new fees.