Donors praise efforts to improve investment climate, ‘ready’ to offer support

AMMAN — The government and donor agencies agreed on Sunday to accelerate the pace of work to create an attractive investment climate that prevents duplication and overlapping in the work of donors.

At a meeting chaired by Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Imad Fakhoury, senior officials and representatives of donors working to support business environment reform discussed means to coordinate assistance and organising their efforts to make Jordan an attractive investment environment.

Talks covered means to build the capacities of the Jordan Investment Commission and reviewing the relevant economic laws and regulations, according to a statement from the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation.

The donors are USAID, the EU, the UK, the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation, and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, in addition to a number of European ambassadors and key partners supporting the Kingdom.

Donors praised the government’s measures to organise and coordinate work, and prevent overlapping and scattered efforts in improving the business environment and competitiveness.

Fakhoury said the meeting is an output of the London donor conference on supporting Syria and the region that was held in February to support host countries of Syrian refugees and to endorse the Jordan Compact. 

The conference’s outputs focused on supporting the government’s efforts to improve the business and investment environment and enhance access to European markets through the simplification of the rules of origin.

Fakhoury said Jordan adopted a number of policies to attract investments and improve the business environment, and to create job opportunities for Jordanians.

The minister highlighted the most important components of the government’s working plan to be implemented with donors, including the revision of laws regulations business to avoid duplication.

The meeting witnessed discussions on the nature of support and projects implemented by donors to accelerate the upgrading of the investment environment and competitiveness. 

Fakhoury urged donors to commit to their support and give high priority to implementing projects relevant to economic reforms, especially procedures to promote investment, and the regulations governing the work of the Jordan Investment Commission.

The two sides agreed to hold periodic meetings with all donors to review work progress in implementing reforms.