CRISIS MANAGEMENT AS A DRIVER OF SUSTAINABLE TOURISM IN JORDAN: EVALUATING PERFORMANCE OF JORDANIAN TOURISM PUBLIC POLICIES DURING CRISIS - BEFORE AND AFTER COVID-19

Abstract

This paper evaluates the policies taken by Jordanian tourism sector before and after COVID-19; it is divided into two parts: the first dealt with the period 2011-2019 which followed the events of Arab Spring, the second focused on the post-COVID-19 period. A mixed methodology was used as for the Arab Spring case a quantitative approach that aimed at measuring the satisfaction of 54 travel agents about policies taken by public tourism sector was used. A Structure Equation Modelling analysis was conducted to test the relationship between specific satisfaction about promotional and economic policies as independent variables, and the general satisfaction as a dependent variable. As for the case of COVID-19, a different approach was used where the Tourism National Strategy 2021-2025 and reports on the influence of COVID-19 on Jordanian Economy were referred to make an evaluation of governmental performance. There was an obvious absence of the concept of “Crisis Management" in tourism national strategies (MOTA, 2003; 2010; 2015); where the focus was on diversifying the tourism product, enhancing the image of the country and increasing competitiveness