NIGERIA (eTN) – Abdul Razzaq Arabiyat, Managing Director of the Jordan Tourism Board, has disclosed that his country is working hard to ease visa processing for Nigerians, as his country intends marketing their religious sites to them.
He said his agency is working hard to minimize the waiting time for visa processing from 30 days to 15 days.
Razzaq Arabiyat added, “We are working on getting visa on arrival for Nigerians, as the Jordanian government has realized the importance of the Nigerian market.”
According to him, “Jordan is blessed with historical, cultural, and religious sites.”
Addressing selected Nigerian journalists, who were in Jordan on a “Fam Trip,” Razzaq Arabiyat noted, “Before now, Jordan has been marketing the cultural and historical sites in the country, but we are now changing strategy as we have decided on marketing religious tourism.”
He noted that the Vatican has approved four places in the country as pilgrim sites, “Two millennia ago, the area opposite Jericho had been identified as the place where Jesus Christ was baptized by John the Baptist, making it one of the focal Christian pilgrim sites.”
Razzaq Arabiyat added that the area known as Bethany beyond Jordan has been discovered between the Jordan River and St. Elijah’s hill.
He said they are working on having 15,000 religious leaders around the world to see how pilgrimage can start from Jordan as approved by the Vatican.
The Jordan Tourism Board disclosed that they will soon be having a road show in Nigeria for tour operators as part of their marketing strategy, noting that the direct flight of Royal Jordanian Airways to Lagos will boost tourism.
Razzaq Arabiyat also noted that about 3.8 million tourists visit the country with most of them from the Gulf countries, Europe, and South Africa “but we are coming to Nigeria for tourists as one of the emerging markets in Africa.”
He explained that the Jordanian government has invested so much in tourism in recent years, saying “tourism is our oil here in Jordan.”
According to a publication in the Jordan Times, the travel and tourism sector accounted for 12 percent of Jordan’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2012.
The trip was facilitated by Royal Jordanian Airlines, a member of OneWorld Alliance.
