Jordan tourism min urges better connectivity, archaeological collabs with India

Queisi highlighted two main goals for the bilateral meeting: improving connectivity via direct flights and fostering collaboration in archaeology

Jordan’s minister of tourism and antiquities, Makram Mustafa A Queisi, during his visit to India for the World Heritage Committee meeting, said that he is focusing on improving connectivity between both countries through direct flights. Queisi, ahead of his bilateral meeting with Indian counterpart Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, stressed the need for direct flights between New Delhi and Amman, Jordan’s capital.

Indian minister of tourism Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Jordanian tourism minister Makram Mustafa A Queisi at the World Heritage Committee Meeting at Bharat Mandapam l, New Delhi on Monday. (Gajendra Singh Shekhawat-X)

The minister’s visit coincides with the nomination of Umm Al-Jimāl, Jordan’s seventh site to be named a World Heritage Site. Umm Al-Jimāl, located in northern Jordan, is an ancient rural settlement that evolved from a Roman settlement around the 5th century CE and was active until the 8th century CE, when it was abandoned.

Queisi highlighted two main goals for the bilateral meeting: improving connectivity via direct flights and fostering collaboration in archaeology. Direct flight will reduce travel time between the two countries to around 4-5 hours, which takes upto an entire day now.

“We are proposing incentive schemes for airlines in India to operate between the two countries, as we are already doing with countries in Europe, as well as with USA, Canada and Australia. We have also spoken to the Royal Jordanian Airlines, and they assured that they can operate direct flights to India by March 2025, but I’d like it to be sooner,” said Queisi.

In terms of archaeological collaboration, Queisi pointed out the potential benefits of mutual experience between the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and Jordan’s Department of Antiquities.

Queisi urged people to view West Asia not as a single unit but as distinct regions, noting that despite disturbances in neighboring countries, Jordan remains safe and resilient. While the Israel-Palestine conflict did affect tourism in Jordan in the last quarter of 2023, it has started picking up again this year, he added. The Israel-Palestine conflict-affected area lies on the western side of Jordan.

“Don’t look at the perception and do not look at the Middle East as one unit. It is not like if one bullet is fired somewhere in the Middle East, the whole region is impacted... I need people to look at us from a different perspective. Amman is different from any other city of capital in the region Jordan has been safe and resilient for decades. Security is something that we never compromise on. In terms of the culture, its uniqueness, and the sites we offer, Jordan has a lot to offer,” said the tourism minister.

Jordan’s tourism sector saw a record number of visitors in 2019, which was surpassed by 25% in 2023, generating $7.3 billion from over six million tourists, the minister said. He noted that while 49% of tourists come from the Arab world and 18% from the US and Europe, the ongoing conflict has significantly reduced the latter.

“But we lost about 70% of the 18% after the war began. We also lost Indian tourists, but that surprises me because we are similar, and we understand each other. I wouldn’t blame the west to look at the Middle East as one unit, but I would be surprised if we are looked at in India, from the same angle. We don’t do that. If something happened in India, it would not prevent me from travelling here. We just need to ease travel and I hope that the travel numbers will at least double in the coming years between the two countries,” said Queisi.

The minister added that given the population of India and their travel behaviour, he expects more tourists will start looking at Jordan as a travel destination. He added that Jordan is also opening up to Bollywood film shootings and received about 67000 Indian tourists in 2023. He elaborated on the sites that Jordan has, including the city of Petra, that is already a World Heritage Site.

“There is only one Petra in the world and everything else is an extension. Petra for us is not only architecture. Petra, for us, is a full-fledged civilisation, a trade route, a commerce centre that about 2000 years ago also connected India to Jordan via the Silk Route. We know now that the first loaf of bread was made in Jordan. Jesus Christ himself was baptised in Jordan and the site is still there. Jordan has much more to offer for tourists that shows how Jordanians are people of art and technology,” said the minister.

Queisi said that the visa process is already simplified as tourists from both countries can apply online and get visas for travel.