Jordan's tourism industry to introduce e-payment and reservation services
Amman– As part of efforts to help Jordan's tourism industry respond to the global trend among travelers to research, plan, book and pay for travel services online, a seminar was held today to introduce tourism service providers in Jordan to the e-payment gateway system, PAYNET. The system was developed through a joint venture between Visa Jordan Card Services (VJCS) and Specialized Technical Services (STS), and through a partnership with the USAID Jordan Tourism Development Project it was customized for the local tourism sector. It will enable businesses to access new markets and increase sales and promotion.
“These efforts correspond with the ministry’s plans to develop the sector in response to the latest developments and global tourism trends in order to attract more visitors to Jordan,” said H.E. Zaid Goussous, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities. He explained that, “Many potential visitors are online and by facilitating online booking and payment, we can reach these markets and meet their requirements.”
According to Ibrahim Osta, Chief of Party of the USAID tourism project, “This is the first local e-payment service to be offered in Jordan and for the tourism sector it is a major step towards reaching online tourism markets; this will help Jordan gain competitiveness as a tourism destination.”
"We are happy to support the development of Jordan's tourism industry though PAYNET, which enables companies to showcase their services and products to customers all over the world and facilitates online credit card payments; this will contribute to developing this vital economic sector," said Mr. Ramzi Zeine, STS Executive Chairman and PAYNET Board Member.
The seminar, which was attended by industry representatives from hotels, tour operators, car rentals, handicraft retailers, guides and others, raised awareness about the PAYNET e-payment gateway and highlighted the benefits of using electronic sales and marketing tools. Attendees learnt how to install the PAYNET service and what requirements need to be met, such as minimum IT and website requirements.
PAYNET offers the tourism industry a secure e-payment service, at reduced commission fees, through local banks and in multiple payment methods, including credit and debit cards and direct bank account debits over the Internet.
This event follows on from an agreement in June last year between the USAID Jordan Tourism Development Project and VJCS and STS to introduce PAYNET to Jordan's tourism industry. The USAID tourism project will also assist some tourism service providers to integrate the new payment gateway with their websites.
Related to these efforts, a hands-on training workshop to support Jordan’s hotel industry adopting electronic reservations also took place today. It was organized by the USAID tourism project and Nightsbridge, an international company for reservation solutions that is offers a reservation system for Jordanian hotels in cooperation with a local IT company, Sky Software. Hotel representatives learnt about the advantages of the new reservation system and how to use it.
“This achievement improves the quality of electronic services and will help enhance the efficiency of the hotel sector. It provides all hotel establishments with the opportunity to develop and respond to modern trends,” said Mr. Michel Nazzal, President of the Jordan Hotel Association. He added, “We at JHA welcome this positive step and the fruitful cooperation that will contribute to increasing tourism numbers and facilitating quick and safe bookings at hotels as reasonable rates.”
By introducing both these new services, hoteliers in Jordan will be able to receive room bookings online as well as purchases, as potential visitors will be able to check room availability and easily reserve and pay for the rooms of their choice.
Providing such electronic reservation and sales services is an indication of the advancement and competitiveness of services offered by Jordan's tourism industry. It is projected that in 2011 global online tourism bookings will top $170 billion and these services will help attract to Jordan more potential visitors who use the Internet to plan, book and pay for their holidays.