PETRA, JORDAN // It’s high season in Petra, an ancient city hewn from rose-coloured rock and Jordan’s biggest tourist draw.
Yet nearby hotels stand virtually empty and only a trickle of tourists make their way through the slot canyon to the Treasury building where scenes of one of the Indiana Jones movies were filmed.
Petra’s slump is part of a sharp decline in tourism as Jordan’s economy pays the price for regional turbulence and its high-profile role in the US-led battle against ISIL militants next door.
Jordan's involvement in the anti-ISIL coalition drew worldwide attention earlier this year, when it stepped up airstrikes against targets in Syria after the militants burned to death a Jordanian fighter pilot in a cage.
With the harrowing images, war seemed to come closer and tourism suffered.
Video of the pilot's immolation, released by the militants in February, led to a surge in cancellations of hotel bookings in Jordan, tourism officials said.
The tourism industry is now trying to lure visitors with price cuts, including waiving some airport fees. But a quick recovery appears doubtful as neighbouring Syria and Iraq sink deeper into violence and ISIL militants continue to control large areas of both countries.
“We are not optimistic for 2015,” said Ahmad Amarat, manager of the 95-room Kings’ Way Hotel near Petra, which closed four months ago after occupancy rate fell to 28 per cent in 2014, from 95 per cent in 2010.
Tourism problems are just one of many challenges Jordan’s economy has faced since the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings.
“The instability in the region affected the economic indicators, mainly tourism, as well as foreign direct investment,” said government spokesman Mohammed Al Momani. At the same time, hundreds of thousands of refugees from Syria’s civil war, now in its fifth year, have strained public services.
Before the Arab Spring, Jordan’s tourism industry was going strong, with 8.2 million visitors in 2010. By 2013, that number had dropped to 5.4 million, according to the World Bank.
The slump threatens thousands of tourism jobs, a loss Jordan can ill afford. The official unemployment rate is close to 12 per cent, though actual joblessness is believed to much higher, especially among young Jordanians, creating fertile ground for extremism.
In Petra, a Unesco World Heritage site, the number of annual visitors dropped from 800,000 in 2010 to 400,000 last year, said the Jordan Hotel Association.
About half of the visitors currently come for day trips, rather than stay overnight.
Hussam Hamadeen, a 37-year-old father of three, lost his job after the Kings’ Way Hotel closed. He could not find work in two other tourist areas – the capital, Amman and in the Red Sea port of Aqaba, and now stays home. “Everyone here is doing the same, and we don’t know what will happen in a few months when we run out of money,” he said.
Some of the travellers said living in the region helped put security concerns into perspective.
“Sometimes it seems things are getting more hyped up. I am not scared to be in Jordan, and I am not scared to be in Saudi either,” said American teacher Tracy Redding who works in Saudi Arabia.
Noor Muqadam, an Indian working in Dubai, said he had booked a Petra trip in January, before the video of the immolation of the Jordanian pilot emerged. When he got worried, his Jordanian colleagues assured him the country was safe.
Jordan’s government has been trying harder to bring back tourists. Fees and travel taxes at the airport in Aqaba have been waived to lure back charter flights and discount airlines, said Mr Al Majali of the hotel association.
The tourism board, meanwhile, took dozens of travel writers and bloggers on a junket this week, with Jordan’s Queen Rania welcoming the group.
But Amarat, the manager of the shuttered Kings’ Way Hotel, said a quick turnaround is unlikely.
“Let’s say what is going on in Syria stopped today and they get rid of ISIL today,” he said, standing in the deserted hotel lobby. “People will not start coming back the next month.”
* Associated Press
What is the Supreme Petroleum Council?
The Abu Dhabi Supreme Petroleum Council was established in 1988 and is the highest governing body in Abu Dhabi’s oil and gas industry. The council formulates, oversees and executes the emirate’s petroleum-related policies. It also approves the allocation of capital spending across state-owned Adnoc’s upstream, downstream and midstream operations and functions as the company’s board of directors. The SPC’s mandate is also required for auctioning oil and gas concessions in Abu Dhabi and for awarding blocks to international oil companies. The council is chaired by Sheikh Khalifa, the President and Ruler of Abu Dhabi while Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Abu Dhabi’s Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, is the vice chairman.
Test
Director: S Sashikanth
Cast: Nayanthara, Siddharth, Meera Jasmine, R Madhavan
Star rating: 2/5
MATCH INFO
Quarter-finals
Saturday (all times UAE)
England v Australia, 11.15am
New Zealand v Ireland, 2.15pm
Sunday
Wales v France, 11.15am
Japan v South Africa, 2.15pm
Overall standings
1. Christopher Froome (GBR/Sky) 68hr 18min 36sec,
2. Fabio Aru (ITA/AST) at 0:18.
3. Romain Bardet (FRA/ALM) 0:23.
4. Rigoberto Uran (COL/CAN) 0:29.
5. Mikel Landa (ESP/SKY) 1:17.
RACE CARD
4pm Al Bastakiya – Listed (TB) $150,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
4.35pm Dubai City Of Gold – Group 2 (TB) $228,000 (Turf) 2,410m
5.10pm Mahab Al Shimaal – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,200m
5.45pm Burj Nahaar – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,600m
6.20pm Jebel Hatta – Group 1 (TB) $260,000 (T) 1,800m
6.55pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 – Group 1 (TB) $390,000 (D) 2,000m
7.30pm Nad Al Sheba – Group 3 (TB) $228,000 (T) 1,200m
A Prayer Before Dawn
Director: Jean-Stephane Sauvaire
Starring: Joe Cole, Somluck Kamsing, Panya Yimmumphai
Three stars
Company Profile
Company name: OneOrder
Started: October 2021
Founders: Tamer Amer and Karim Maurice
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Industry: technology, logistics
Investors: A15 and self-funded
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
2018 ICC World Twenty20 Asian Western Regional Qualifier
The top three teams progress to the Asia Qualifier
Final: UAE beat Qatar by nine wickets
Third-place play-off: Kuwait beat Saudi Arabia by five runs
Table
1 UAE 5 5 0 10
2 Qatar 5 4 1 8
3 Saudi 5 3 2 6
4 Kuwait 5 2 3 4
5 Bahrain 5 1 4 2
6 Maldives 5 0 5 0
FORSPOKEN
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November 30, December 1-2
International Vets
Christina Noble Children’s Foundation fixtures
Thursday, November 30:
10.20am, Pitch 3, v 100 World Legends Project
1.20pm, Pitch 4, v Malta Marauders
Friday, December 1:
9am, Pitch 4, v SBA Pirates
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
