The President of The University of Jordan (UJ), Prof. Ekhleif Tarawneh met on Monday with a delegation representing the Economic Growth for Sustainable Tourism Project (Siyaha), the latest in a three-phase USAID tourism industry development program. The meeting aimed to discuss plan on the development of the Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality in Aqaba campus under the support of Siyaha.
The meeting dealt with the outcomes of a study on the status of the Faculty in terms of facilities, curriculum and staff.
The meeting also discussed updating the faculty’s programs and study plans to ensure compliance with international accreditation standards, and developing a two-year action plan to upgrade the faculty based on the results and recommendations of the evaluation study.
According to Tarawneh, the development of the Faculty of Tourism and Hospitality in Aqaba comes within UJ’s strategy to develop the academic process at the University.
Tarawneh briefed the delegation about the recent achievements of the university derived from UJ's strategic goal of becoming a world-class university, indicating that the university has recently received a three-star rating from the (QS) World University Ranking for the quality of higher education.
Mr. Ibrahim Osta, Chief of Party of the USAID/Jordan Tourism Development Project said: "We aim through our support to the University of Jordan to improve the quality of Hospitality and Tourism education offered by the Aqaba Branch by reviewing programs, developing global partnerships and obtaining the TedQual Certification from the World Tourism Organization, in addition to promoting scientific research that would help in the development of tourism and hotel services.”
It’s worth mentioning that the University of Jordan in cooperation with the Tourism Development Project plans to hold an international conference on tourism education and scientific research next April in Aqaba campus with the participation of a group of academics and experts in the field of tourism and hospitality.