Egypt's tourism revenue falls 95% after political upheavals

Revenues from ancient Egyptian monuments such as the pyramids have fallen by 95% since Egypt's 2011 revolution, the country's antiquities minister has said.

Revenues fell from 3bn Egyptian pounds (£250m) in 2010 to just 125m (£10.5m) in 2014, Mamdouh el-Damaty told al-Mehwar, a private Egyptian television channel.

The drop has left the ministry – which derives most of its income from tourist revenues – struggling to pay thousands of staff. "The current yearly income is good enough to pay the salaries of the ministry's employees for just two months," Damaty said in the interview.

Tourism in Egypt has been decimated since 2011, with media reports of social unrest coupled with western travel warnings putting off holidaymakers from travelling to most of the nation's famous destinations. Only 9.5 million tourists stayed in Egypt's hotels in 2013, compared to 14.7 million in 2010.