Petra authority chief promises small projects unit to help boost employment

AMMAN — Chief Commissioner of the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority (PDTRA) Suleiman Farajat on Monday met with a number of unemployed Jordanians and uncovered plans to establish a small projects unit to boost employment.

The unit will also channel the workforce towards existing opportunities and encourage the private sector to capitalise on untapped potential of Petra’s unemployed workforce, Farajat underlined.

A lot of job opportunities are available in the tourism sector, he added in a statement carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra. 

This year, Petra will see the launch of several hospitality businesses and hotels that would provide hundreds of jobs for the local community, he asserted.

The dialogue Farajat attended featured calls for amending the investment law too, in order to attract more investments, Petra reported.

Recruitment at the PDTRA is channelled through the Civil Service Bureau, Farajat explained.

Meanwhile, he noted, the authority, in cooperation with the local community, is exploring possible solutions to address unemployment in the area. 

The jobseekers organised a march to the PDTRA building, calling for jobs at the authority and the companies operating in the area, Petra said.

Several officials attended the meeting that PDTRA’s chief commissioner held with the marching jobseekers, the statement highlighted.

Jordan’s unemployment rate has reached 18.6 per cent at the end of the third quarter of 2018, the Department of Statistics’ latest figures showed.