Jordan's Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Makram Qaisi receives an interview with Xinhua in Ammankingbillycasino, Jordan, July 10, 2024. (Xinhua/He Yiping)

AMMAN, July 12 (Xinhua) -- Jordan's Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Makram Qaisi has expressed a strong desire to enhance the Hashemite Kingdom's cultural exchanges with China and attract more Chinese tourists to his country.

In an exclusive interview with Xinhua, the Jordanian minister emphasized the importance of China's role in developing the country's tourism sector, especially during the current Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip, which has affected the number of foreign tourists to Jordan.

Qaisi, who plans to visit China to engage with Chinese tourism authorities and stakeholders, highlighted Jordan's appeal to Chinese tourists, citing the country's 16,000 registered archaeological sites. He noted that Chinese tourists, known for their cultural interests, would find Jordan's historical sites particularly attractive.

The minister emphasized the shared historical and civilizational experiences between Chinese and Arab peoples, suggesting that visitors to Jordan would experience the country as an open-air museum filled with sites of great historical and heritage value.

He also highlighted the diversity of Jordan's tourism, which includes religious tourism, adventure tourism, and unique attractions like the Dead Sea, the lowest point on earth at 440 meters below sea level.

Tourism is a significant contributor to Jordan's economy, accounting for around 14.6 percent of the country's GDP in 2023, with 6.3 million tourists generating 5.3 billion Jordanian dinars (approximately 7.3 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue.

Qaisi stressed that tourism is not just about numbers but about fostering mutual understanding and cultural exchanges. He views Chinese tourists as "ambassadors for Jordan" once they return home from their visits to the Kingdom.

Voicing support for the Global Civilization Initiative proposed by China in 2023 to promote dialogue between different civilizations and advance the shared prosperity of various civilizations, the minister said tourism helps enhance cultural exchanges and understanding through learning about each other's heritage, cuisine, and other components of civilization.

However, the number of Chinese tourists visiting Jordan has not fully recovered to the pre-pandemic level. In 2023, 14,743 Chinese tourists visited Jordan, a 56-percent decline from 2019, which stood at 34,083.

The minister touted the ease of obtaining Jordanian visas for Chinese tourists and the ongoing efforts to make Jordan more accommodating, such as translating restaurant menus and training tour guides in Chinese, with cooperation from the Chinese embassy, hoping that more Chinese tourists will visit Jordan in the future.■

Jordan's Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Makram Qaisi receives an interview with Xinhua in Amman, Jordan, July 10, 2024. (Xinhua/He Yiping)