By: Mahmoud Salah El Din

Cairo – Mubasher: Egypt's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Friday decided to increase entry fees to Egypt from various land, sea and air ports starting 1 March 2017.

The ministry said it has raised entry fees to the country by more than two fold from $25 to $60.

"The decision came out all of a sudden and surprised many in the sector," the former head of the tourism and aviation committee in the Chamber of Commerce, Amari Abdelazim, told Mubasher, highlighting that the sector has not yet recovered.

"The decision will affect competition with neighbouring markets," AbdelAzim told Mubasher via phone, noting that the increase in fees could have been done when a significant improvement had taken place in the sector.

Mubasher acquired a copy of the Ministry of Interior's decision no. 344 of 2017 to raise visa entry fees.

Immigration authorities, port authorities and the Chamber of Tourism Companies and Agencies have been notified of the decision, the ministry said in a statement.

Egypt had been taking steps to regain tourism traffic and meet requirements pertaining to safety and security at its airports, which have been subject to international scrutiny after a Russian jet had been downed on 31 October 2015 after taking off from Sharm El Sheikh Airport.

Translated by: Nada Adel Sobhi