Inside Jordan's plan to revamp the baptism site of Jesus
The $300 million project accompanying the Bethany beyond Jordan, includes a "tourist village" and two major phases starting in 2023 and ending in 2030.
AMMAN – The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan announced this month a seven-year-project to revamp the baptism site of Jesus christ located on the east bank of the Jordan River and visited annually by thousands of pilgrims.
The $300 million project aims at creating a touristic village adjacent to “Bethany beyond the Jordan,” the baptism site, set to start in 2023 and go until 2030. It will be a reproduction of how life was almost 2,000 years ago, organizers say.
An area of 1,374 dunams (339.5 acres) has been allocated by the Jordanian government for the Baptism Site Development Zone (BDZ).
