Day: February 22, 2024

Amman: Minister of Planning and International Cooperation, Zeina Touqan, met with Canadian Development Minister Ahmed Hussen to discuss ongoing development cooperation programs as part of the Middle East support strategy.

According to a ministry statement Thursday, Touqan expressed gratitude for Canada’s consistent support in critical sectors such as education, economic development, women’s empowerment, and aiding Syrian refugees. She emphasized the role of this assistance in advancing national development goals outlined in the 2023-2025 Economic Modernization Vision.

Touqan outlined the progress of current projects backed by Canada, emphasizing their significance in executing impactful programs for national development.

The meeting finalized arrangements for announcing a series of new development projects worth approximately 95 million Canadian dollars. These initiatives, spanning education, environment, energy, digitization, entrepreneurship, and women’s economic empowerment, are slated for implementatio
n between 2024 and 2025, with agreements expected to be signed by the end of March.

Highlighted among the upcoming projects are support for the Aqaba Marine Reserve, teacher training, strategic plans for the education sector, vocational and technical education shifts, and sustainable energy promotion.

Touqan also outlined future economic and development priorities, including education, water resources, and women’s economic participation, stressing the importance of maintaining Jordan as a priority for Canadian development aid. She underscored the significance of international backing for Jordan’s response plan to the Syrian crisis.

The discussion also touched upon Jordan’s ongoing access to global concessional financing mechanisms, particularly crucial for refugee-hosting countries like Jordan.

Hussen affirmed that Canada’s new aid package would bolster essential projects aligned with the Economic Modernization Vision, praising Jordan’s regional role, especially in hosting Syrian refugees.

He reiterated
Canada’s commitment to supporting Jordan’s development priorities, particularly in education, vocational training, and women’s empowerment, reflecting the strong ties between the two nations.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman: Prime Minister Dr. Bisher Khasawneh on Thursday received Omani Minister of Trade, Industry and Investment Promotion, Qais bin Muhammad Al Yousef, and his accompanying delegation.

During the meeting attended by Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply, Yousef Shamali, Minister of Investment, Khulud Saqqaf, and Omani Ambassador to Jordan, Fahd bin Abdul Rahman Al-Ajili, PM lauded the “close, historic” bilateral relations.

Khasawneh noted importance of building on outcomes of the recent visit made by His Majesty King Abdullah II to Oman and his meeting with His Majesty Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said to expand cooperation horizons and achieve common interests.

He also praised efforts of the Jordanian-Omani working team that is following up on the visit’s outcomes to turn them into agreements for a number of important areas.

The PM affirmed Jordan’s welcome of Omani investments, voicing aspiration that Jordan becomes an investment destination for Oman Investment Fund.

Additionally, he reviewed in this
regard the legislative and administrative measures taken by the government to regulate Jordan’s investment environment, which granted multiple incentives to stimulate investment as a basic driver of economic growth that is considered one of the key goals of Economic Modernization Vision.

Meanwhile, the Omani minister expressed appreciation for Jordan’s “firm and deep-rooted” positions over the decades, expressing pride in the “historic and brotherly” relations.

He stressed joint keenness to strengthen and develop ties in various fields, based on directives of the two countries’ wise leaderships during the recent visit made by His Majesty King Abdullah II to Oman.

Al Yousef also hailed the Kingdom’s economic steps in recent years, most notably launch of the Economic Modernization Vision and its “clear” goals and “serious” steps to attract investment and provide job opportunities.

The Omani minister referred to the multiple commonalities and integration frameworks that can be worked on to serve common inter
ests, pointing out that his visit to Jordan featured visits to major companies and public and private entities to take advantage of the available opportunities.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman: Minister of Agriculture, Khaled Hneifat, on Thursday checked on a number of projects in Azraq district of Zarqa governorate.

The minister toured an integrated project financed by interest-free Agricultural Credit Corporation funding within the axis of supporting Jordan’s food industries and absorbing surplus production.

According to the ministry’s statement, the project houses farms and a factory to manufacture grape vinegar and molasses from local production, using techniques free of industrial additives and provides 40 direct and 75 indirect job opportunities.

Hneifat also inspected Azraq’s Wadi Rutami catchment site, which was established within water harvesting efforts, along with 115 similar areas and dams launched during the year 2023, which were filled to their full capacity amounting to 100,000 cubic metres.

During his inauguration of Judud Hatchery of Arab Company for Livestock Development (ACOLID) in Azraq, which serves Jordan’s poultry industry, Hneifat said the ministry is following up
on various field achievements by direct contact with farmers, noting that Azraq region is considered an agricultural region par excellence.

He stressed the importance of the poultry sector, which constitutes a pillar of Jordan’s food security, referring to its major role in self-sufficiency, as it meets 85% of the local need.

Additionally, he noted importance of establishing this new hatchery, which would support 75% of the local market’s need for maternal eggs.

To date, he said volume of investment in Jordan’s poultry sector amounts to JD2 billion, adding that thousands of young Jordanians work in its establishments countrywide.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman: His Majesty King Abdullah has sent a cable to Kuwait Emir Sheikh Meshal Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah on the occasion of his country’s national day, wishing the people of Kuwait continued progress and prosperity.

Source: Jordan News Agency