Khaberni - A Jordanian tourism monitor wrote .
In Washington, when Bob Woodward wrote about power, he wasn't seeking scandals,
but was chasing that precise moment when the system stays silent about its errors.
In that moment, silence is not neutrality… it's a stance.
In Amman today, the file of the Ministry of Tourism and the Tourism Promotion Authority stands at a similar moment.
What do we know… and what is not said?
We know, without speculation or leaks, that the Jordanian tourism sector is on the threshold of an exceptional phase:
• A gradual return to activity after a regional war that affected travel movement.
• A global readiness for the 2026 World Cup, where Jordan enters this historical moment for the first time.
• A sector contributes about 15% of GDP and provides hundreds of thousands of direct and indirect job opportunities.
And we also know—and this is documented by official decisions—that the sector itself has witnessed in a short period:
• Change of the Tourism Minister.
• Change of the Secretary-General of the Ministry of Tourism.
• A vacancy or confusion in the position of the Director-General of the Tourism Promotion Authority.
What we do not know—and it is most important—is the reason, the goal, and the plan.
Change when it becomes a pattern… not a reform.
In public administration, change is a tool.
But when it recurs without explanation, it turns into a sign of danger.
Informed sources within the tourism sector—who do not speak to the media, but follow the details—describe the scene as:
“Decisions made separately, without a single narrative or a clear objective document.”
There is no official announcement clarifying:
• What was the malfunction?
• What did not function?
• What will change within 6 or 12 months?
And here the problem begins.
Because the investor, airline, and tour organizer do not ask about names…
but they ask about the stability of the decision.
Tourism Promotion Authority: An administrative position or a diplomatic front?
In any country, the Tourism Promotion Authority is not just an ordinary executive department.
It is the place where the following are managed:
• The country's image
• Marketing messages
• Relations with foreign markets
• Coordination with aviation, hotels, and global platforms
When this position becomes:
• Vacant,
• Or subject to tug-of-war,
• Or surrounded by unspecified procedures,
The damage does not immediately show in the numbers,
but later appears in missed opportunities.
The appointment that came after doubts widened
Today, a new Director-General has been appointed for the Tourism Promotion Authority.
The decision, in its form, is a needed step.
But in a cold political and administrative reading, the decision cannot be separated from its timing.
This appointment was not preceded by:
• A clear reform plan,
• An official explanation for the series of previous changes,
• Or a display of interim goals and performance indicators.
But it came after doubts had widened,
and after the questions moved from whispers within the sector to public debate in public opinion.
And here the question becomes legitimate:
Are we facing the implementation of a plan that was already ready?
Or in front of patching decisions to contain confusion that has become politically expensive?
In public administration literature, decisions made after doubts have escalated, not before,
are classified as reactive management, not as a public policy based on planning.
And patching decisions might fill a temporary gap,
but it does not restore confidence,
nor does it send a real assurance message to the market,
nor does it establish long-term administrative stability.
Questions are not meant to accuse... but to answer
This is not an article of complaint, but a file of questions:
1. Was a written plan put in place before these changes?
2. Was this plan presented to the Council of Ministers?
3. Were the changes linked to clear performance indicators?
4. Or are we facing reactive decisions, without a time frame and no comprehensive vision?
The absence of an answer does not mean it does not exist,
but it means that the state has chosen not to say it.
The general mandate: Here specifically begins the responsibility
Mr. President,
This article does not request your intervention in the details, nor in the names.
But it reminds of a simple constitutional reality:
The general mandate is not measured by the decisions made, but by the decisions that are allowed to occur without control.
When changes accumulate in a sensitive sector:
• Without a statement,
• Without announced standards,
• Without a timetable,
Then the responsibility becomes political, not administrative.
The economy does not wait… and opportunities do not return
In political economy, there is a known concept:
The cost of inaction.
In tourism, this cost means:
• A lost season,
• An unlaunched campaign,
• A market that chose another destination,
• And doubts that are not written in reports, but are discussed in closed rooms.
And more dangerously:
As Jordan enters a global moment with the World Cup, it may seem—to those observing from the outside—as if it has not prepared itself administratively before organizing its promotional campaigns.
The conclusion: It is not the time for experiments
This article does not attack individuals,
nor does it defend names,
nor does it align with one side against another.
But it clearly says:
Managing tourism is not an experimental field, nor a venue for settlement, nor a secondary concern.
And the state that manages its economic sectors with the logic of patching decisions,
pays the price later in market confidence, the country's image, and its competitive capability.
Mr. President…
When the silence becomes too prolonged,
people start reading between the lines.
And tourism—as well as the economy—does not read the statements,
but reads the signals.
