Jordan seeks stimulus to revive declining tourism

The Jordanian government said on Saturday that it was working on a plan to address the decline in the tourism sector and attract more tourists, the state-run Petra news agency reported.

Jordan's Minister of Tourism Nayef Fayez said the plan will focus on developing tourism services and promote tourism sites in different areas.

The plan also includes attracting new investments in the sector and creating jobs in different areas.

The minister added that the plan includes introducing new tourism packages to tourists, which aimed to attract Arab and non-Arab tourists.

Fayez cited official figures which show a 13.8 percent drop in the number of tourists in the first five months of 2015.

According to the minister, tourist groups to the ancient city of Petra, one of the New Seven Wonders of the World, dropped by 35 percent between January and May this year, forcing several establishments to lay off employees.

Tourism in Jordan was negatively affected with the ongoing turmoil in the region, which made many tourists cancel their visits to the Arab country over the past few months. Endit