Government keen on sustaining tourism, its future — Shweikeh

AMMAN — As Jordan is one of the few countries that has “full control over COVID-19”, the government has exerted numerous efforts to sustain tourism and its future in the Kingdom, Tourism Minister Majd Shweikeh said on Saturday.

Shweikeh said the efforts began with the immediate stage to ensure the resilience of the sector, resolving critical issues, focusing on the sustainability of the sector and the labour force, with the support of the Central Bank of Jordan, the Social Security Corporation and the social solidarity fund.

The measures that followed the immediate stage focused on the short-term, the minister said, noting that once the lockdown is lifted and movement between governorates is possible again, the efforts will focus on reactivating domestic tourism.

“We will focus on everything; adventure, health, wellness and all kinds of tourism, domestically by incentivising and subsidising,” Shweikeh told The Jordan Times in a phone interview.

She noted that the government and stakeholders will work on encouraging people to visit tourist locations through acceptable rates by service providers.

“The third aspect we are working on is digitalisation through virtual and augmented reality, as I said before there will be an online platform for oriental antiquities, the goal of which is digitalising for the purpose of monetisation, bringing income through the process,” the minister said.

The use of these VR and AR portals will be available worldwide and through social media platforms, it will be ensured that the outreach is everywhere, starting with museums for virtual reality, according to Shweikeh.

Digitalisation will help Jordan remain present as a safe place, Shweikeh said, noting that they will be relying on VR technology, while working on discovering new measures, experiences and addressable markets.

Health and safety measures will be in place when domestic tourism is back, as there will be continuous disinfection of the locations and tourists as well as service providers alike will be asked to wear medical face masks and gloves, and also practice social distancing as part of a new culture and awareness, she said, noting that this will ensure the spread remains under control.

Shweikeh added that “certification is very important”, noting that work is in progress on obtaining “safe and clean” certificates that attest to locations being safe for visiting and enjoyment.

“We are working closely with tourism agents and different tour operators to make sure that we are ready once they lift lockdown in other countries, work will focus on measures at the airport, transportation and more through the ministry and all stakeholders,” Shweikeh said, noting that tour guides, transportation, local communities, restaurants, hotels and the whole tourism scene will be engaged to cater for domestic tourism.

As for international tourism, work is in progress on various scenarios that are directly related to lifting lockdown in other countries around the world as well as in Jordan, noting that observation and engaging is continuous.

“At the G20 Tourism Ministers’ Meeting, we agreed that there will be new measures for travelling and coordination among different countries on best practices, what works, what does not, how countries can be ready,” Shweikeh said, adding, that new measures will be implemented worldwide for international travelling.

The Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Interior Ministry among others will be part of the discussion for international travel measures when the time comes, the minister concluded.