Finance, trade ministers meet Irbid industrialists

AMMAN — Ministers of finance and of trade, industry and supply, Omar Malhas and Yarub Qudah respectively, on Monday listened to demands of representatives of the Irbid Chamber of Industry (ICI), the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

During a meeting that was held at the ICI, in the presence of officials from the Income and Sales Tax Department and the Jordan Customs Department, Qudah said that efforts to open trade lines with Iraq are under way and expected borders between the two countries to reopen by July. 

Iraqi Ambassador to Jordan Safia Talib Al Suhail recently announced that the Karameh-Tureibil border crossing between Iraq and Jordan will reopen in two to four months. 

She said that the Iraqi Cabinet also tasked a company with ensuring the security of the international road connecting Baghdad with Jordan through the crossing.

During Monday’s meeting, Qudah highlighted the importance of the Iraqi market as a traditional market for Jordanian products, noting that both countries had reached an agreement to exempt some products from customs fees to enhance trade volume between both countries.

He urged industrialists to quickly provide the ministry with their production volume to benefit from those customs exemptions. 

For his part, Malhas said that economic growth rates between 2012 and 2016 ranged between 2.5 and 3 per cent, while the population rose by 3.1 per cent, noting the urgency of a speedy economic growth to guarantee employment.

The government seeks to stimulate economic growth through a set of reforms, Malhas said, adding that the challenges facing the economy include low growth, unemployment, a debt surpassing 95 per cent of the gross domestic product, in addition to the budget deficit. 

ICI President Hani Abu Hassan highlighted the importance of the industrial sector, which lies in its direct contribution to some 25 per cent of the country’s GDP, in addition to its employment of more than 240,000 people, most of whom are Jordanian, and constitute some 18 per cent of the Kingdom’s workforce.  

The industrial sector contributes to some 90 per cent of the national exports, with 65 per cent of foreign investments in the industrial sector, Abu Hassan noted.

The value of ICI’s exports in 2016 stood at $677.6 million, registering a 6.5 per cent growth compared to 2015, when its exports reached $633.6 million.