Egypt has inaugurated the first phase of restoration of the venerated Egyptian Museum in central Cairo, giving the collection a facelift after many of its items were transferred to other museums across the country.
The building in Cairo’s Tahrir Square first opened in 1902 and has long ranked as one of the world’s greatest museums, with vast displays of Pharaonic artifacts that span 3,000 years of history.
Tourism is a major dollar earner in Egypt’s cash-strapped economy and is slowly recovering from a number of hits, including political turmoil following a popular uprising in 2011, the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russian invasion of Ukraine , which cut off the substantial flow of tourists from both countries.
Tourism Minister Ahmed Issa said at Monday’s opening ceremony that Egypt expected its tourism industry to grow by 25 percent to 30 percent annually.