Month: December 2021

Categories
Affairs

CBJ joins Network for Greening the Financial System

The Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ) has joined the Network for Greening the Financial System (NGFS), a network of 100 central banks and financial supervisors that aims to accelerate the scaling up of green finance and develop recommendations for central banks’ role for climate change.

The CBJ said in a statement on Wednesday that the network is pursuing a better global response and delivery of the Paris and Glasgow climate agreements, in addition to boosting financial systems’ role in climate change management and channeling finance to low-carbon and green investments.

To that end, the network is advocating the adoption of best global practices in the green financing field, raising awareness over climate change and organizing related encounters.

The CBJ’s move is part of Jordan’s response to climate change and its effort to mitigate its impact on the national economy of the Kingdom, in addition to educating the banking and financing sector about its consequences.

The CBJ is currently preparing a strategy to bolster green financing in the Kingdom in partnership with the banking and financing sector as part of a broader national effort in this regard, including the Green Growth National Action Plan 2021-2025 (GG-NAP).

Source: Jordan News Agency

Categories
Affairs

Jordanian portal to facilitate trade goes online

The Jordan Trade Facilitation Portal went online Wednesday, as part of the “improving business environment for small and medium-sized enterprises” project.

The project is jointly implemented by Jordan, the International Trade Center (ITC) and the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), and is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Netherlands.

The portal offers information on foreign trade and practical steps to import, export and transit more than 70 products in a business-friendly manner. It also provides lists of procedures and documents to be submitted at different steps.

Additionally, the portal offers a trade information bank, including legal frameworks, free trade agreements, rules of origin and service allowance. It also provides an automated answering machine for quick inquiries on the requirements and terms of trade in Jordan in both Arabic and English.

Director-General of the Jordan Customs Department, Maj. Gen. Jalal Qudah, stressed that the launch of the portal is part of government plans to include economic sectors in digital transformation, which fosters a stable investment environment and enhances the competitiveness of the Jordanian small and medium-sized enterprises.

Raghad Tali, Project Manager at the ITC, said that the portal is a instrument to improve transparency and access to information, enhance cooperation between border control agencies and prop up dialogue between the public and private sectors, as well as the revision and simplification of procedures.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Categories
Health

25 Covid-19 deaths, 5,047 infections recorded Wednesday

The Ministry of Health said Wednesday that it recorded 25 coronavirus deaths and 5,047 infections across the Kingdom, bringing the death toll from the pandemic to 11,633 and the caseload to 958,990.

According to the ministry’s daily brief, the positivity rate for the day was at 9.84 per cent.

It said that the number of currently active cases reached 56,991 with 204 admitted to hospitals today, adding that 134 cases have been discharged. It said that the total number of confirmed cases that are now hospitalized reached 1,105.

According to the daily report, the occupancy rate of isolation beds in the northern region was 28 per cent, intensive care beds was 44 per cent and ventilators 28 per cent.

The occupancy rate of isolation beds in the central region was at 28 percent, intensive care beds 37 per cent and ventilators 17 per cent, it said.

In the southern region, the occupancy rate of isolation beds was at 12 per cent, intensive care beds 13 per cent and ventilators 10 per cent, it said.

The ministry said that 3,739 Covid-19 patients have recovered, bringing the total number of expected recoveries by the end of the 14-day isolation period to 890,366.

It also said that 51,284 PCR tests were conducted today, bringing the total number of swab tests that had been collected since the beginning of the pandemic to 12,220,357.

Some 4,142,489 received the first COVID-19 jab, while 3,754,055 received the two jabs, the brief added.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Categories
Health

Unvaccinated foreign workers to be deported as of December 15

The Interior Ministry on Wednesday said that grace period granted for foreign workers to receive the two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine will end on December 15, to be followed by “strict measures”, including deportation.

In a statement, the ministry said that the decision aims to protect public health, noting that prompting foreign workers to get vaccinated protects them against future infections and disease transmission.

Foreign workers are allowed to receive the vaccine for free, without the need to present their residency or work permits.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Categories
Health

UK reports 171 COVID fatalities

The UK’s health department Wednesday reported 171 COVID-19 deaths, taking the death toll to 145,110.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said some 48,370 people tested positive for the highly contagious lung disease, as the caseload nears 10 million.

Source: Jordan News Agency