JEDDAH: The president of Jordan’s Arab Thought Forum, Prince Hassan bin Talal, has received the president of the Arab Tourism Organization, Bandar bin Fahd Al-Fuhaid, along with his accompanying delegation in Amman. The reception was also attended by the forum’s secretary-general, Mohammed Abu Hammour, and the Jordanian minister of tourism and antiquities, Nayef Al-Fayez. Prince Hassan praised the efforts of the Arab Tourism Organization, the role it is undertaking in the Arab world and its support for tourism in Jordan, highlighting the signing of a cooperation agreement between the two organizations. Al-Fuhaid stressed the importance of joint Arab action to empower societies economically, saying that ATF and ATO share many similar goals and approaches, especially in developing Arab societies and promoting the tourism sector. Abu Hammour said that “the signing of this agreement aims to boost communication between the forum and the cultural and intellectual institutions, shape a contemporary Arab vision in regards to the issues related to the Arab societies, economy, culture and development and work on unifying the Arab efforts and visions to mitigate the crises and challenges.” “The tourism sector is among the sectors that influence the Arab states’ GPD the most,” he said, stressing the importance of “promoting the role of institutions when it comes to the protection and development of tourism investments.” The MoU that was signed between ATF and ATO stipulates that they are committed to cooperate and unify their efforts in a way that meets the aspirations of both bodies by holding consultations, exchanging views and visits, implementing joint projects and organizing intellectual, cultural and economic events.