Press Releases

1. On March 1 (same day local time), Mr. Junichi Kosuge, Japanese Ambassador to Jordan, and His Excellency Dr. Ibrahim Saif, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, signed and exchanged notes in Petra, Jordan regarding Japan’s cooperation with Cultural Grant Assistance of up to 686.2 million yen for the Project for the Construction of the Petra Museum.

2. Jordan is blessed with cultural heritage from the Roman and Ottoman eras and natural scenery such as the Dead Sea, therefore tourism is a key industry for obtaining foreign currency and as a source of job creation. The country is proud of the Petra archaeological site, a World Heritage site visited by 600,000 or more tourists a year, but one challenge is that no facility exists for appropriately preserving and displaying artifacts excavated from the site etc., or for introducing the Petra archeological sites to tourists and local residents in a structured way.

3. This cooperation involves the provision of funding to the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority, which is in charge of the overall administration of the Petra Region, for the construction of a museum for showcasing the archeological site at an entrance to the site that is readily accessible to visitors. Jordon contributes to the stability of the Middle East. The Government of Japan advocates supporting Jordan’s independent and ongoing economic growth as one key area of assistance for the country, and within that Japan continues to proactively support Jordan’s tourism sector, which has strong development potential. As a result of this latest cooperation, it will become possible to appropriately preserve and display precious cultural properties excavated at the Petra archeological site and its vicinity, and to promote education relating to the site and the dissemination of information on the importance of its heritage. Additionally, this cooperation is expected to increase the value of the site as a tourism resource.