PRN Newswire: According to Phoenicia Group the leading U.S.-Libyan diversified business and consultancy group, tourism infrastructure development is being given

national priority by the Libyan government, with the Libyan Economic

Development Board, a policy result of the National Economic Strategy,

tasked with steering the far ranging initiative.

    Libya's massive tourism potential - Libya seeks U.S. and international

partners and investors in developing tourism infrastructure to sustain an

estimated 1,000,000 visitors a year by 2015 - belie the dearth in essential

tourism related infrastructure as a result of long-standing sanctions and

economic malaise.

    Libya attracted about 130,000 visitors in 2006, a drop in the bucket

compared to the over 6,000,000 annual visitors its neighbors Egypt and

Morocco get on average; this, however, hasn't stopped the development of a

cult reputation among desert and water sport enthusiasts and archaeological

seekers.

    This status was boosted and heightened when talk show host Oprah billed

Libya first choice as holiday destination last year; and, despite limited

infrastructure and sometimes time-consuming visa processing, the number of

visitors is skyrocketing annually.

    The LEDB, which was inaugurated last month at a glitzy ceremony at the

Corinthia Hotel, was keynoted by Saif Al Islam Gaddafi, son of the Libyan

leader, and Michael Porter, the Harvard business guru brought in to

jumpstart the LEDB along with the Monitor Group.

    The message coming out is of a new Libya, cosmopolitan,

business-friendly, yet proud of its heritage and unique geopolitical

realities; of the creation of Free Trade Zones, like Abu Kammesh-Zwara and

Madina Al Hurra, with gleaming hotels, resorts, and luxury developments; of

liberal and transparent investment mechanisms a la Hong Kong and Dubai; of

first world cities and a new vision for Libya in the 21st century.

    That vision is shared by Ryad Sunusi, President & CEO of the privately-

held Phoenicia Group, a strong supporter of the initiative, who says that

vision has already started taking place in what he calls North Africa's

most vibrant economy, confidently predicting Libya as 'the dynamo of the

MENA region within a generation,' and touting the opportunities to

international investors and developers in frequent seminars and

conferences.

    "The tourism sector has tremendous untapped potential - Libya's 1,100

km coastline of unspoiled beaches, its preserved historical ruins, and

desert oases make it the perfect sun, sea, and sand vacation spot - thrown

in with the best preserved Roman ruins outside Italy," Sunusi said.

    "Build it and they will come was the Vegas mantra then, it's even more

so in today's Libya, where the smart money is going, with $6 Billion

already committed by local, foreign, and joint venture projects."

    Sunusi, a leading Libyan consultant and analyst, whose Phoenicia Group

has earned a reputation as a conduit for international businesses in

accessing the Libyan market, and has taken project management roles in

tourism development projects, projects sustained growth in the sector well

into the future.

    Libya's real estate and construction sector has witnessed an

unprecedented boom, buoyed by investor confidence and rising prosperity, an

outcome of an aggressive reform program the Libyan government is

spearheading to encourage and create a sustainable private sector to

jumpstart growth and attract FDI in a Libyan economic engine stalled since

the eighties.

    "We've got stretches of beaches rivaling anything out of the French

Riviera, and none of the haggling and unpleasantness you get in neighboring

countries," Sunusi said.

    "Libya is the place to be, it's still emerging, but if you're looking

for a challenge and reward, this is it."

    The Phoenicia Group, a widely touted poster child of Libyan private

sector achievement, has, since its inception in 1999, experienced rapid

expansion in the oil & gas, construction, tourism, telecommunications,

health, services, and agribusiness sectors, making it the leading Libyan

private business and consultancy group; and sponsoring the spin-off of the

Libyan-American Business Council in 2004 to promote U.S.-Libyan trade and

business exchange.