Egypt's tourism revenue plunges

Revenues from Egypt's vital tourism sector plunged almost 30% last year, dragged down by the unrest following the ousting of President Hosni Mubarak.

The shortfall has forced the country to turn to the International Monetary Fund to bridge a growing budget deficit.

The decline in revenues caused by near-daily protests and strikes underscores the challenges as its military rulers and the interim government plot a course toward handing over power to an elected civilian administration.

Tourism Minister Mounir Abdel-Nour said that the number of tourists who came to Egypt in 2011 dropped by more than 33% - to 9.8 million - compared to 14.7 million in 2010.

Revenues for the year clocked in at 8.8bn (€6.8bn) compared to $12.5bn (€9.68bn) in 2010.

Earlier this week, an IMF delegation visited the country and a formal request for a 3.2bn (€2.47bn) support package was issued.