Qatar in a bid to boost economic activities in its isolated country
has opened the borders to citizens of 80 countries yet to be made
public.
Qatar, isolated by its neighbours in a diplomatic crisis,
announced on Wednesday a visa-free entry programme for 80 nationalities
to stimulate air transport and tourism.
“The visa exemption scheme
will make Qatar the most open country in the region,” tourism
department official Hassan al-Ibrahim told a press conference in Doha.
Interior
ministry official Mohamed Rashed al-Mazroui said the nationals of 80
countries would only need to present a valid passport for entry to the
energy-rich Gulf state which is to host football’s 2022 World Cup.
The
80 countries were not named and neither was the date from which the
visa-free programme will take effect, but Qatari newspapers said it
would apply mainly to Western nationals.
Nationals of 33 countries
will be authorised to stay for 180 days and the other 47 for up to 30
days, periods which are renewable a single time. Mazroui said the
countries were selected on the basis of security and economic
considerations, or for the buying-power of their nationals.
Qatar
Airways chief Akbar al-Baker said his carrier, which this year plans to
extend its network to 62 new destinations, would be a primary
beneficiary.
Regional kingpin Saudi Arabia as well as Bahrain, the
United Arab Emirates and Egypt have since June 5 imposed a boycott on
Qatar, accusing the emirate of fostering Islamist extremist groups and
of close ties to Iran.
Doha has denied the allegations. The four
Gulf nations have closed their land and sea borders to Qatar and imposed
economic and air traffic restrictions.
On August 3, Qatar created
a new permanent residents status for certain groups of foreigners,
including those who have worked for the benefit of the emirate, a first
for the Gulf.
Under the new rules, children with a Qatari mother
and a foreign father can benefit from the new status, along with foreign
residents who have “given service to Qatar” or have “skills that can
benefit the country”.
Those deemed eligible for the new status
will be afforded the same access as Qataris to free public services,
such as health and education. Qatar has a population of 2.4 million
people, 90 percent of whom are foreigners, including many from south
Asia working in construction
