Saudi Tourism Ministry launches NFT...

The digital mementos were presented to delegates at the Executive Council of the UNWTO

The Saudi Tourism Ministry and Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) has announced the creation of a non-fungible token (NFT) souvenirs.

The Minister of Tourism, Ahmed Al-Khateeb, presented the personalised digital mementos in appreciation of the visit made by the heads of delegations participating in the 116th session of the Executive Council of the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), which was recently held in Jeddah.

A virtual reality art show was held simultaneously where an artist painted a collection of 3D landscapes inspired by virtual Saudi landmarks. The 3D drawings were converted into digital format NFTs and gifted as souvenirs to the guests, along with a ledger wallet with an address on the blockchain to access their exclusively owned artwork. Ledger wallets are hardware cryptocurrency wallets used for storing digital assets.

Commenting on Saudi Arabia’s appetite for digital transformation, Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb said: “As technology advances, it is important that we remain at the forefront of innovation.

“NFTs serve as a bold statement to the world by showing them how distinguished Saudi Arabia is… travellers can expect to see and experience unique and futuristic offerings in the Kingdom.”

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Recently, Saudi Arabia has made great strides in the digital space and is striving to drive the growth of its digital economy in line with the directives of Saudi’s Vision 2030.

In keeping with its commitment to contributing to these goals, the Ministry of Tourism launched a three-year Digital Tourism Strategy earlier this year.

With the aim of accelerating the sector’s growth, creating new jobs and spurring innovation, the strategy focuses on nine innovative programmes that will boost Saudi’s National Tourism Strategy and Vision 2030 targets, including a million new tourism jobs, 100 million visits to the country and 10% GDP contribution from tourism.

For more information, visit www.sta.gov.sa