Jordanian Minister of Investment Muthana Gharaibeh, deputizing for His Majesty King Abdullah II of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, inaugurated the activities of the First Gulf-Jordanian Investment Conference, organized by the Jordan Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of GCC Chambers.
Minister Gharaibeh conveyed His Majesty's greetings to conference participants, praising the distinguished relations between Jordan and the Gulf states, which he described as a model to be followed in joint Arab cooperation, especially in the economic and investment fields.
He added that Jordan is keen to give full attention to Gulf investments in the Kingdom and provide all facilities and stimulate them to be present on the Jordanian investment map, especially green hydrogen projects, water, transportation, entertainment cities, and high-value industries. He stressed that Gulf investments are the highest, representing about 40 percent of the total foreign direct investment in Jordan, distributed over strategic sectors such as industry, information technology, energy, agriculture, tourism, and financial services. Al-Gharaibeh explained that Jordan represents a promising economic gateway that allows Gulf and international investors to access markets with a size of $ 50 trillion, thanks to its wide network of free trade agreements that characterize it.
He pointed out that Jordan has succeeded in building a promising and constantly growing ICT sector, which is the strongest in the region, as giant international companies have benefited from the competitiveness of Jordanian human talent and digitally enabled jobs in Jordan have grown by 19 percent in recent years. He said that Jordan ranked 11th globally in providing digital and technological talent and skills, and second in the region and region in the field of big data and analytics. He explained that the investment opportunities in the Kingdom are rich and diverse in various sectors with high added value identified by the Economic Modernization Vision 2033, such as high-value industries, information and communication technology, and future services and creative industries. He referred to the sectors of health care, tourism, medical tourism, energy, water, transportation, railways, logistics, and commercial sectors, in addition to major projects, which enjoy a package of incentives, investment advantages, and facilities provided by the Ministry of Investment and are working to enhance and empower them in the Kingdom. Minister Gharaibeh renewed his call to promote Gulf investments in the Kingdom, stressing the government's commitment to facilitating investment procedures, providing the necessary incentives, creating all possibilities for its success, and facilitating its work.
Jassim Al-Budaiwi
For his part, the Secretary General of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Jassim Mohammed Al-Budaiwi, expressed his appreciation and thanks to His Majesty King Abdullah II for his generous patronage of the conference and to Jordan for the facilities and support provided to implement the joint action plans that were agreed upon within the framework of the strategic partnership between the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Kingdom. Expressing his hope for more cohesion, cooperation, and integration, to achieve the common interests of both sides.
He said that those looking forward to the Gulf-Jordanian relations will clearly note the depth of this historical relationship and the common interests between the GCC countries and the Kingdom, as this relationship was established a long time ago and was framed by the establishment of the strategic partnership and the adoption of the joint action plan for cooperation between the two sides (2020-2025), based on the deep historical relations. He pointed out that the size and level of Jordanian-Gulf strategic relations, their strength and durability at the political and security levels are not reflected on Despite the strength of our economic relations, we must work hard to strengthen these relations so that the Gulf and Jordanian peoples benefit, especially since we have all the elements of success for the desired economic relations.
He added: "Trade relations between the GCC countries and Jordan have witnessed remarkable growth in recent years, as the volume of trade exchange from 2020 to 2023 amounted to more than $ 36 billion, including exports worth $ 26 billion to the Arab Gulf countries, expected to increase in the coming years thanks to the continuous economic cooperation between the two sides." We aspire to enhance trade facilitation and stimulate possibilities to develop and maximize trade exchange between us, in addition to enhancing cooperation and investment in services trade, e-commerce, financial technologies, tourism, and the development of digital trade between the two sides.
He pointed out that the Gulf investment in the Amman Financial Market ranks first among Arab and foreign investments in public shareholding companies listed on the stock exchange, with a value exceeding $ 4 billion, while Jordanian investments in the Gulf capital markets amount to $ 700 million during 2021. He pointed out that these figures and indicators indicate the huge potential that we can achieve together through strengthening cooperation and economic integration, stressing that the two sides today have a historic opportunity to strengthen partnerships and expand the horizons of cooperation. In a way that serves the interests of the people and supports the stability and prosperity of the region.
Faisal Al, Rawas
For his part, the Chairman of the Federation of GCC Chambers Sheikh Faisal bin Abdullah Al-Rawas expressed his appreciation to His Majesty King Abdullah II for his generous patronage of the conference, which reflects the depth and strength of Gulf-Jordanian relations at various political and economic levels. He said that the conference comes as a confirmation of the fruitful Gulf-Jordanian relations in light of the steady growth in economic relations between the GCC countries and Jordan, where we have witnessed during the last period the signing of economic partnership agreements to liberalize trade exchange of goods and services between the two sides.
Al-Rawas added that Gulf investments are at the top of the list of non-Jordanian investors in the Kingdom in various economic sectors, where the volume of these investments is estimated at about $ 60 billion, distributed over many sectors such as tourism, food security, education, health, industry, and manufacturing industries. He stressed that the services trade plays an important role in the relations between the two sides, represented by the large numbers of Gulf tourists who visit the Kingdom annually, in addition to students studying in Jordanian universities. He pointed out that there are about 100,000 Jordanians working in the Gulf countries, and their annual remittances to the Kingdom amount to more than $ 3.3 billion, and they are appreciated and praised for their constructive role in the implementation of private sector projects and government development projects.
He pointed out that we look at the investment and trade relations between the Gulf and Jordanian private sectors as they involve broad and broad horizons, especially under the wise leadership on both sides and their ability to provide various incentives and forms of support to expand these horizons and translate the directions of our wise political leaders to upgrade them to be a model for the integration of Arab economies. He expressed his hope that the conference will achieve its objectives in building strong partnerships between the Gulf and Jordanian private sectors, indicating that its sessions will discuss many vital sectors such as food security and logistics, which requires the creation of industries, warehouses and safe transportation routes that secure food security, in addition to benefiting from e-commerce to promote trade in the private sector between the two sides.
Al-Rawas stressed that the trends of sustainability and green economy require studying the establishment of special projects in the fields of solar energy, directing Gulf-Jordanian investments towards renewable energy projects, working on the electrical interconnection project from renewable energy, enhancing cooperation in the field of entrepreneurship, and establishing partnerships between Gulf and Jordanian small and medium enterprises.
Khalil Al, Hajj Tawfiq
In turn, the President of the Jordan Chamber of Commerce, Khalil Hajj Tawfiq, said that the conference establishes a new phase of economic work based on solid rules that cross us to a bright future, and be the nucleus of a comprehensive Arab economic unit that constitutes a key and a path towards prosperity and well-being, in a way that enables the promotion of joint Arab action and unification of efforts to face regional and international challenges.
He added that the conference is held amid exceptional circumstances that the region is going through, which requires all of us to stand united to confront them, stressing that Jordan has always believed that building strong partnerships in all fields is the best way to achieve security and stability in our region.
He pointed out that the Jordan Chamber of Commerce's hosting of the 65th Conference and Meeting of the Board of Directors of the Federation of GCC Chambers represents an embodiment of the deep brotherly relations that bind the Kingdom with the Arab Gulf countries in various fields, pointing out that the Chamber is always working to enhance economic and investment cooperation with the Arab Gulf countries in line with the vision of economic modernization and the visions of their countries that seek to achieve economic diversification and sustainable development.
Hajj Tawfik stressed that these common visions represent a strong basis for building strategic partnerships in many strategic sectors, especially mining, energy, information technology, services, transport, tourism, food security, pharmaceutical industries, and others.
He considered that this conference constitutes a vital platform for the exchange of economic experiences and visions, and reflects our permanent commitment to providing an attractive and encouraging investment environment in Jordan, and enhancing joint cooperation through opportunities available in various sectors, pointing to the Chamber's keenness to maintain the annual holding of the conference in the Kingdom within the framework of strengthening strategic partnerships between the Kingdom and the Arab Gulf countries.
He stressed that the Chamber is moving to organize the conference in the city of Aqaba to provide an opportunity to see the promising investment opportunities in it, stressing the need to employ all the commonalities that bring together the Kingdom and the Arab Gulf countries for the benefit of youth, through ambitious plans that support creativity, leadership, and creative ideas, and benefit from competencies and exchange of experiences. Hajj Tawfiq said that investing in youth is an inevitable option and must be translated into reality, noting that Jordan and the Arab Gulf countries are full of educated and qualified youth forces and are looking for an opportunity to prove themselves, which requires all of us to embrace and invest in them with non-traditional jobs that meet the needs of the future.
