Day: December 19, 2021

The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Supply, in cooperation with the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) and the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute, launched Sunday a project to boost productivity of small- and medium-sized agricultural enterprises (SME).

The three-year project, titled “Supporting competitiveness and sustainable innovation for Jordanian small- and medium-sized agricultural enterprises,” is funded by the AICS and implemented by the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute.

The project aims to enhance the productivity of small- and medium-sized agricultural enterprises and provide opportunities for marketing and exporting to international markets for high-quality agro-food products and their supply chain.

The Secretary-General of the ministry Dana Zoubi said that the importance of the project lies in enhancing the competitiveness of Jordanian agricultural products and providing the necessary support to reach the European market.

The targeted agricultural products, she noted, were identified in partnership with the concerned authorities and according to a number of criteria, including lack of dependence on natural resources.

She indicated that the project will also provide training and rehabilitation for farmers so that their produce can match international requirements, in addition to providing equipment to prepare agricultural products for export.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Industrialists said on Sunday that a government plan to reduce customs duties to about 5%, in order to combat evasion or avoidance, “will not work,” stressing that an ideal tariff is the one that guarantees a continuous flow of government revenue on the one hand and protects the local industry on the other.

This came in a paper that the Amman Chamber of Industry on Sunday presented to the members of the Financial and Economic Committee in the Senate. According to the paper, the contribution of customs revenues to the GDP in the period 2000-2020 decreased to 0.8 percent from 4.3 percent after the customs tariff was reduced as a result of Jordan’s ratification of several international trade agreements.

The Amman Chamber of Industry said that the real burden on the citizen is the sales tax, not customs duties, calling for a reduction in sales tax on basic commodities.

According to the chamber, the customs revenue is about JD255 million, or 9.0 percent of the total consumption of the Jordanian economy, which means, according to the chamber, that reducing the tariff or even canceling it will not have a tangible impact on the economy, because it will not cause a shock on the demand side.

The paper cited household expenses and income accounts, which indicate that 51 percent of Jordanian families, whose monthly income ranges between JD237-JD752, pay between JD0.08 – JD0.96 per month as customs duties on consumed goods, while paying JD86-JD200 per month as sales tax on the same consumed goods.

The Chamber said that when the government reduced customs duties on clothing and footwear in 2016, the price index in this sub-sector rose by 3.2 points after 6 months, which confirms that the reduction was not reflected in the final prices due to demand and supply in other markets.

Source: Jordan News Agency