Siyaha/Jordan Tourism Development Project 3 April 2007

IT Project to Enhance Tourism in Wadi Rum
April 3rd, 2007

Wadi Rum - A one-year project aiming to serve as a business incubator and develop IT capabilities of local communities in the Wadi Rum area was officially launched today by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Jordan Tourism Development Project (Siyaha), Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) and the Wadi Rum Protected Area management. The launch took place during a signing ceremony held at the Wadi Rum Visitor Center in the presence of USAID Jordan Mission Director, Ms. Anne Aarnes, and Chief Commissioner of ASEZA, H.E. Eng. Nader Al Dahabi. Also attending were representatives of project sponsors Arab Bank and Microsoft, as well as members from the local communities and other industry stakeholders.

The ?Wadi Rum Information Technology Network? project, to be implemented by NetCorps Jordan (NCJ), is an IT-related development project which aims to increase economic opportunities from tourism for local communities in the Wadi Rum area. This will be achieved by building the capacities of the local communities, especially youth, women, entrepreneurs and cooperatives, through providing them with professional and business skills as well as information and communication technology (ICT) tools and skills to enhance their performance, provide better services, and promote quality products. The total cost of the project is JD211,000 of which USAID/Siyaha awarded NCJ a grant in the amount of JD141,500 to implement the project.

The USAID/Siyaha-funded project has already recruited and trained 21 young men and women from the local community, who have joined the project as NCJ paid interns for ten months in order to carry out training and tourism development activities. Over the course of the year, the project will train more than 200 people in basic IT and business skills resulting in new and improved tourism-related products and services. The project grant will also cover tourism-related curricula development, basic IT training for the community, cooperatives? capacity development, and IT-related project incubation. The capacities of the cooperatives will be developed by improving their institutional, marketing and financial capabilities to enable them to provide a wider range of higher quality services to their members and local community. Tourism is a major source of income for communities in Wadi Rum, and the local cooperatives provide many tourism services, including camping, guiding, 4x4 desert tours, camel treks, Bedouin cultural experiences, and more.

NetCorps Jordan?s proven methodology enables entrepreneurs to boost their marketing and sales, as has been demonstrated in other projects in Jordan. One such example is the pilot project which was implemented in Zarqa by 20 interns. The project aimed to provide the target beneficiaries with IT related knowledge and skills, as well as build the capacities of these 34 individuals from 23 small and medium enterprises, with a focus on enhancing their sales management.

Ms. Tania Jordan, Chief Executive Officer of NCJ, stated, "By utilizing the power of ICT tools and skills, coupled with the energy and potential of youth, economic opportunities can be created, enhanced by improved marketing, better business management and improved life skills such as leadership, communications and research."

Mr. Eric Johnson, USAID Private Enterprise Officer, also commented, "This is more than an IT Project. As a business incubator, it is an important catalyst for creating new micro and small entrepreneurial ventures, and will help cooperatives? members, from camp owners to guides, improve their product offerings and promote them to tour operators and tourists."

The 12-month community tourism development project commenced in January 2007, and since then three IT centers have been established at the Wadi Rum Visitor Center, the Wadi Rum Cooperative and Al Deiseh Cooperative. The Arab Bank has supported the project through a donation of 12 new computers. NCJ was able to leverage generous private sector donations from Site Group, Techwecare and Palma who also contributed computers; while @YourService provided free maintenance and the replacement of defected parts for the donated machines. Additionally, Microsoft supported the centers by donating the Unlimited Potential Curriculum, and by training of trainers on utilizing it with the aim of providing community members with basic ICT skills. In addition, Microsoft also donated software licenses to five community-based organizations in Wadi Rum.