25,000 Jordanians benefitted from National Employment Programme — Shamali

AMMAN — Unemployment is a national concern that requires collective responsibility, especially in addressing  its primary cause: the education-job market mismatch, said Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply Yousef Shamali on Saturday.

Speaking on the sidelines of “A Year of Modernisation” forum held at the Dead Sea, the minister highlighted several government measures aimed at addressing the  unemployment issue, mainly encouraging students to earn degrees that meet the job market’s requirements.

Shamali said that the National Employment Programme, worth JD30 million, has employed 25,000 individuals since its launch last year, 35 per cent of whom are women. The programme also has specific allocations for beneficiaries of the National Aid Fund, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The volume of national exports reached JD4.5 billion during the first half of this year, with a growth rate of 2.3 per cent compared with the same period last year, which Shamali described as “unprecedented”.

The minister also noted that the coverage ratio of total exports to imports increased by 2.8 percentage points, reaching 50.3 per cent during the first half of 2023, compared with 47.5 per cent during the same period last year. This is “a matter of pride for the industrial sector,” he said.

Shamali also announced the launch of the 2023-2026 National Export Strategy. The strategy aims to maximise the benefits from free trade agreements signed between the Kingdom and numerous countries and economic blocs, allowing Jordanian industries to access new markets. The ministry also launched the Jordanian Exporter Platform to expand access to export market information.