Jordan tourism ‘resilient’

Amman, Jordan – 17 January 2017

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Jordan’s tourism sector has proved resilient with revenues stable at US$4 billion in 2016 year against the previous year despite several militant attacks, the tourism minister said.

Jordan hosted last year 3.8 million foreign visitors who spent in the country at least one night, a rise of 2.6 percent from the previous year, Lina Annab told reporters.

Annab said the sector was so far able to cushion itself from the repercussions of an attack last month in the southern city of Karak, with few signs of any significant drop in tourist arrivals from the region or Europe, Reuters reported.

“It’s business as usual and the cancellations have been minimal. Unfortunately, as for danger there is no place that is 100 percent safe,” said Annab.

More than a dozen people were killed, including a Canadian tourist, in two attacks by Islamist militants in December in the southern city of Karak. Islamic State militants claimed responsibility for the violence.

Tourism is one of the country’s main sources of foreign currency and constitutes around 10 percent of the country’s GDP. Investors have poured billions of dollars in the past decade into a string of hotels across the country.