72M visitors attend entertainment events, activities in 2023: GEA

The number of visitors to entertainment events and activities jumped 17% year-on-year (YoY) to 72 million in 2023, the General Entertainment Authority (GEA) announced. In addition, more than 6,000 licenses were issued across 117 cities.

GEA licensed 5,406 events of all kinds, including entertainment events and shows, and live shows in restaurants and cafes.

In addition, it granted 230 entertainment destinations licenses, up 46% YoY, in 2023.

The entertainment sector reported a 150% hike in terms of the number of operational companies to 8,873 in 2023 from 3,544 companies in 2022.

Specialized entertainment facilities leapt 149% YoY to 4,159 facilities from 1,687 in 2022.

GEA statement indicated that the number of supervisory visits increased by 250%, reaching about 50,000 field and digital visits.

A total of 6,728 violations were registered, led by Riyadh, Makkah and the Eastern Region. Al-Jawf and Northern Border regions recorded the lowest number of violations.