Jimoh Babatunde
The Managing Director, Jordan Tourism Board, Abdul Razzaq Arabiyat, has disclosed that they are working hard to ease visa processing for Nigerians as they intend marketing the religious sites in Jordan.
He said the tourism board is working hard to minimize the time for visa processing from 30 days to 15 days.
Abdul 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.
Speaking with selected Nigerian journalists during the week in Amman, he said Jordan is blessed with historical, cultural and religious sites.
Cultural and religious sites
Abdul Razzaq Arabiyat said the country before now 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 explained that the Vatican has approved four places in the country as pilgrim sites, “ two millennia ago, the area opposite Jericho has been identified as the place where Jesus Christ was baptized by John the Baptist, making it one of the focal Christian pilgrim sites.”
Abdul 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 15000 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.
Abdul Razzaq Arabiyat noted that about 3.8 million tourists visit the country with most of them from the Gulf countries, Europe and South Africa “but we coming to Nigeria for tourists as one of the emerging markets in Africa.”
He explained that the Jordanian government has invested more in tourism in recent years, saying “tourism is our oil here in Jordan.”
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2014/03/jordan-targets-nigerias-religious-tourists/
