Industry minister, Iraqi counterpart meet to bolster economic cooperation

AMMAN — Jordan and Iraq on Saturday held talks in Amman, headed by Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply Maha Al Ali and Iraqi Minister of Industry and Minerals Manhal Aziz, to enhance economic cooperation in various fields, especially trade and investment.

The meetings were attended by the ministry’s Secretary General Yousef Shamali and Iraqi Ambassador to Amman Haider Athari and a number of officials, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The Iraqi delegation’s visit comes as a follow-up to the recent Baghdad visit of Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Bisher Al Khasawneh and a ministerial team to examine areas of trade and economic cooperation, the Jordanian-Iraqi-Egyptian tripartite projects, and the development of sectors such as pharmaceuticals, pesticides, insecticides and veterinary drugs.

Ali stressed Jordan's keenness to develop economic cooperation to serve the interests of both parties by maximising their potential and provide commercial and economic opportunities for the private sectors.

She expressed appreciation towards the bilateral relations, noting that they have been strengthened thanks to the visions and directives of the leaderships of the two countries.

For his part, the Iraqi minister voiced his country's interest in bolstering economic cooperation with Jordan, removing obstacles pertaining to intra-trade and encouraging the private sector to set up investment projects in a number of fields.

The two ministers also attended a meeting with representatives of Jordanian and Iraqi private sectors, in the presence of the Chairman of the Board of Jordan Chamber of Commerce  Nael Kabariti, President of the Jordan Chamber of Industry Fathi Jaghbir, representatives of the Jordanian Association of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers, and the Chairman of the Iraqi Business Council Majed Saadi and a number of businesspeople and investors in the two countries.

Kabariti said that Jordan and Iraq possess the elements to achieve economic integration in a number of fields, which requires redoubling efforts and continuing meetings at the governmental and private sector levels.

Jaghbir noted  that Jordan has been engaged in an economic partnership with Iraq for many years, hoping to address the difficulties that limit trade exchange during the coming period.

The visit will include the meeting of the General Assembly of the Jordanian-Iraqi Industry Company on Sunday to accelerate the procedures of the feasibility study for the joint economic zone, which is one of the projects that are being discussed within the framework of tripartite cooperation.

Jordan and Iraq are linked to a number of cooperation agreements in the fields of energy, agriculture, health, education, trade and others. The volume of trade exchange between the two countries last year amounted to JD  448.3 million.