Large investments in travel, tourism, leisure and hospitality sectors in Dubai will continue to attract more visitors to the emirate, in line with its strategy to welcome 20 million visitors by 2020, a senior official has said.

Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum, Second Deputy Chairman of the Executive Council and Chairman of Economic Development Committee, said: "Continuous improvements in the routes, capacity, frequency, quality of service, and competitiveness of air and sea access brought 15 million overnight visitors to Dubai during 2016, up 5 percent compared to 2015.

"This growth is especially good compared to the 4 percent growth in global tourism, and the decline of 4 percent in the Middle East tourism sector, according to the World Tourism Organization," said Shiekh Ahmed, who is also the Chairman of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and Chairman of Emirates Group, according to a Wam news agency report.

The GCC, India, UK and Germany, the traditional source markets, account for 40 percent of Dubai's total visitors. Average spending per visitor increased to Dh8,658 in 2016 from Dh8,252 in 2015. Total spending grew by 7.6 per cent reaching Dh126 billion, while the average length of stay per visitor was seven days.

Dubai’s economy is expected to expand further over the next two years after having outperformed global economic growth and defying downward trends that prevailed worldwide in 2016, said Sheikh Ahmed.

The results of Dubai Plan 2021 Annual Report ‘Dubai Pulse’ highlight that the economic performance of the emirate is better than other economies in the region, and that Dubai’s stable macroeconomic environment, its diversification and sustainability policies, growth strategies and infrastructure initiatives continue to fuel outstanding economic performance even when the global economy faces headwinds, Sheikh Ahmed said.

"Diversification, resilience and sustainability are enshrined in every project, policy and strategy that Dubai adopts, including, for example, the Dubai Plan 2021, Dubai Industrial Strategy 2030, and Expo 2020. The oil sector now makes up for less than one percent of Dubai’s GDP, while varied initiatives have opened up unprecedented opportunities for global businesses in several non-oil sectors," added Sheikh Ahmed.