ERBIL, Kurdistan Region – The tourism sector has rebounded to pre-ISIS war levels, according to a minister in the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). So far, some 2.8 million tourists have visited the Kurdistan Region this year, Nawroz Mawlud, minister of Municipalities and Tourism, said on Rudaw’s Legel Ranj programme on Wednesday. During the war with ISIS, tourism numbers dropped off sharply. The government has reduced taxes by 50 percent in the Region’s main cities and by 70 percent in other areas as part of efforts to boost business for restaurants and hotels, Mawlud added. "We are pursuing the policy of encouraging owners of restaurants and hotels to develop," she said, urging them to meet regulations set by the ministry. "We have now created a great atmosphere for them to develop the tourism sector in the Region,” she added, and urged restaurants to focus on traditional Kurdish dishes to appeal to foreign visitors. A restaurateur from Erbil, Dashti Anwar, however, said he feels “isolated” from the government. "The government should visit the restaurants and ask what are our demands, give feedback, and listen to our complaints," he said, urging greater coordination to develop the sector. Wshyar Darbandi, a university teacher, said the KRG should research Kurdish cuisine to learn what dishes are important to Kurds and a part of the cultural identity. "We have been in a state of war and conflicts in the past and our priorities have been survival, not the development of other sectors," he said, explaining that now is the time to do this development. The Kurdistan Region has beautiful nature and the head of the Erbil Guest Houses and Restaurants said the KRG should encourage construction of tourism infrastructure outside of the main cities with loans and land grants, giving Shaqlawa, Soran, and Raniya as examples of places that could attract more tourists. The majority of holidaymakers coming to the Kurdistan Region for tourism are from central and southern areas of Iraq. Iraqis are attracted by Kurdistan’s cooler mountains in summer and snowcapped peaks in winter. But stringent checkpoints are hampering business, said Maha Ghanm Allami, owner of a tourism company in Baghdad. "Kurdistan has a lot of attractions and fascinating tourism spots,” she said. But “at the checkpoints, they delay us by four to five hours.” She called for the KRG to loosen its measures in time for Christmas and the New Year.
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