Malaysia, Jordan: Sixty years of diplomatic relations, economic growth, and educational exchange

AMMAN — Established in 1957, Malaysia is the federal constitutional monarchy consisting of 14 states and two federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Malaysia. Peninsular Malaysia shares a land and maritime border with Thailand and maritime borders with Singapore, Vietnam and Indonesia while East Malaysia shares land and maritime borders with Brunei and Indonesia, as well as a maritime border with the Philippines and Vietnam.

On August 31.1957 Malaysia, formerly known as Federation of Malaya gained its independence from the British rule, and on September 16th 1963, the Federation of Malaya unified with Sabah and Sarawak to form Malaysia.

"Over the past 67 years, Malaysia has undergone important phases of economic development: From a resource-based country, Malaysia has developed into an advanced industrial country, facilitated by Malaysian plans which is now in its 12th edition," said the Malaysian Ambassador to Jordan Mohamad Nasri Abdul Rahman, adding that the introduction of economic corridors, development projects and other initiatives meant to improve standards of living of its people and it contributed towards the countries’ transformation. 

Regarding relations between Malaysia and Jordan, the diplomatic ties were established in 1965 and have been characterised by warm and brotherly relations, the ambassador stressed,

"Both countries share commonalities in many areas not only in terms of the diversity of the population but also in the interest of the Muslim Ummah, including the Palestinian cause," Abdul Rahman underlined, noting that Malaysia and Jordan are close partners and both support each other in many areas of cooperation such as trade and investment, energy, higher education, pharmaceuticals and defence.

According to the ambassador, for the period between January and July 2024, Malaysia's total trade with Jordan was US $441.5 million, while in 2023 Jordan was Malaysia's 75th largest trading partner, 71st largest export destination and 68th largest source of import.

Malaysia imports to Jordan palm oil and palm oil based agriculture products, textiles, apparels and footwear, palm -based manufactured products, processed food and rubber products.

On the other hand, Jordan imports to Malaysia chemicals and chemical products, crude fertilisers and crude minerals, manufactures of metal and other agricultures and processed food.

"Malaysia offers a conductive business and economic environment with attractive incentives for trade and investment for foreign companies to relocate or undertake new investments into Malaysia," Abdul Rahman said, adding that this includes among others, pioneer status, investment tax allowance, reinvestment allowance and customised package investment incentives.

Therefore, Malaysian embassy works closely with the Amman Chamber of Commerce on potential collaboration between Malaysia and Jordan in promoting trade and investment in both countries.

"In terms of tourism, we are proud to announce that Malaysia has won a remarkable achievement as the top Muslim-friendly Destination of the Year and awarded with the prestigious title of Muslim Women-friendly Destination of the Year in 2023," the ambassador said.

Malaysia is primed for continued expansion with a target of 27.3 million tourists and US $ 23.65 billion this year.

"The upcoming Visit Malaysia 2026 reflects this goal, seeking to attract 35.6 million international tourists and achieve US $ 147.1 billion in tourist receipt," Abdul Rahman stressed.

On the other hand, Jordan is very attractive destination for religious tourism due to a number of Muslim and Christian pilgrimage sites, the ambassador said.

"Currently the embassy is coordinating with the ACC to explore opportunities for cooperation with Jordan to boost arrivals and tourism sectors of the two countries," Abdel Rahman said.

Regarding higher education, there are Malaysian students in Jordan studying at different Jordanian universities. They often study Arabic language, Islamic affairs and Islamic banking. On the other hand, there are post-graduate students from Jordan currently pursuing their studies in Malaysia.

"Malaysia offers a world-class and high-quality education system recognised globally with a total of 12 Malaysian universities ranked in the top 600 according to QS World University Ranking 2024," Abdel Rahman underlined.