The Jordanian National Tourism System

Abstract

Summary The study of National Tourism System in Jordan aims to shed some light on the structure of tourism industry in Jordan by illustrating the real resources present in the country, assessing the quality of services, and then exploring the management efficiency, ie. Governance dimension. The work has been based on the structure provided by the Resource-based Theory (RBT) which gives a significant weight to the existed resources in the territory and considers them as an important factor for the development of the product. Moreover RBT draws a connection between the various components in the area and the evolution and sustainability of tourism product. The author used the Resource-Service-Governance framework to show the relationship between these three elements in order to understand to how extent they affect the final product and its image. Five Jordanian tourist destinations were chosen, for this purpose, as a research field. That was useful to portray the reality of the Jordanian product, and to give a holistic idea about the local tourism systems adopted in these destinations. It is quite clear that the first dimension of the framework (Resources) represents the cornerstone from which to launch any tourist destination by exploiting these resources that can attract both tourists and investors. The analysis of tourism resources in Jordan is considered necessary before putting into place any global master plan for development. Moreover, exploring the nature of resources in Jordan leads us to put in order our priorities of work, focusing on the economic projects and programmes that can generate rapid and sustainable economic results. The second dimension (services) also has a crucial role in the life of the tourist destination. Indeed, a destination with poor tourist facilities (accessibility, accommodation, food and beverage services, and entertainment) will not be able to attract the numbers of tourists that it deserves even if it is rich in resources. The third dimension of the framework is Governance, and here we highlight the impact of policies and strategies adopted by both the public and private sectors to develop the tourism industry in the country. The form of the role played by governance is extremely crucial and significant in the development of tourist sites. In most cases, this role is assumed by government bodies, politicians, and decision makers who undertake practical procedures to realise their visions. Moreover, the concept of “Governance” sheds some light on the managerial aspects of the tourist destination, the degree of coordination between the various stakeholders, and the role given to those stakeholders in terms of the policies and strategy making. Indeed, many countries, especially the developing ones, have started to involve the private sector more in the planning process since it has became an important partner on the development path. Jordan, for example, has launched a great initiative that aims to bridge the gap between the private and public sector, and to build an integrative relationship between them instead of a hostile and unfriendly one. The author attempted to demonstrate several aspects of the Jordanian products such as; evolution of tourist sites, the competitiveness of Jordan as a tourist destination, quality of tourism services, the impact of the transport sector on the performance of Jordanian tourism system, price-quality relationship in the Jordanian product, relationship between private and public sector, decision making process, relationship between various public bodies and private sector, the role of private sector in the enactment of regulations and laws, the role of private sector in the promotion of product, and finally the efficiency of tourism statistical system and its impact on the availability of tourist database in Jordan.