The open-air museum
that is Jordan, which combines natural wonders, rich archeological history,
unique heritage tourism products, faith tourism locations and stories,
conferences and events, unique film production sites, medical and wellness
products, and, most importantly, safety and stability is looked upon by our
neighbors in Saudi Arabia and Oman as a useful model to inform their tourism
growth plans. Despite the significant differences in the source markets and
purpose of travel in these two countries, they complement, and compete with,
Jordan in many ways.
اضافة اعلان
Complementarity is
mutually beneficial. Jordan can attract a few hundred thousand of the millions
of Muslims pilgrims who perform hajj and umrah to visit the over 53 sites and
shrines of prophets and companions of the Prophet Mohammad. This requires some
streamlining of accessibility to Jordan, especially from countries with
restricted visa access to Jordan, where a Saudi visa can be used to access the
Kingdom by getting a visa at the entry border point. In turn, Saudi can
streamline its accessibility for those who visit the golden triangle to visit
Al Ula and Madaen Saleh, as well as the newly emerging resorts and attractions
on the Saudi side or the Red Sea. Probably a designated border crossing between
the two countries with a desert road trip experience is worth considering.
Both Oman and Saudi Arabia are attracting Jordanian labor qualified in the tourism sector. This is a very helpful competition, indeed an opportunity, even as the drain of qualified labor in the tourism sector is putting a lot of strain on the Jordanian tourism sector.
Oman’s diverse
climate and tourist products are not in direct competition with those of
Jordan. However, although Oman is a relatively virgin land for the tourism
industry, despite its very high potential, it is working on positioning itself
as a destination for the expatriate communities in the GCC. Oman is
geographically closer to the majority of them than Jordan, with much better
access, whether by air or by land. Positioning Jordan as a destination for
weekend getaways and short holidays for GCC-based expatriates is long overdue.
The weather is a great selling point to attract both GCC nationals and
expatriates alike.
Both Oman and
Saudi Arabia are attracting Jordanian labor qualified in the tourism sector.
This is a very helpful competition, indeed an opportunity, even as the drain of
qualified labor in the tourism sector is putting a lot of strain on the
Jordanian tourism sector.
Hotels,
restaurants, adventure, and even medical institutions are witnessing a
migration to these newly emerging “tourism industry” markets. It could be an
opportunity for Jordan to invest heavily in “skill development” in the tourism
sector for local, regional, and international markets.
Although Saudi
Arabia and Oman have many unique advantages, their “tourism industry” has not
yet taken off compared to that of Jordan. While Saudi Arabia received nearly 20
million “tourists” in 2019, Oman received around 3.5 million. Jordan received
5.3 million, and the UAE over 20 million.
Saudi tourism has
been dependent on Muslim Haj and Umrah, but the 2030 vision is targeting 100
million, working to diversify products and source markets.
Oman vision 2040
is less ambitious, but the country needs professional labor to realize its
goals and compete with the market leader for now, UAE. This competition will
create more demand for qualified Jordanian labor, especially for Arabic
speaking professionals.
Fares Braizat is the chairman of NAMA Strategic Intelligence
Solutions and former minister of youth. [email protected]
Read more Opinion and Analysis
Jordan News
.jpg)
.jpg)
