His Majesty King Abdullah on Wednesday chaired an Economic Policies Council meeting, during which the Jordan Economic Growth Plan for the next five years was launched.

The 2018-2022 plan is aimed at restoring momentum to economic growth and capitalising on the promising potential for development in Jordan by drawing up sectoral economic and fiscal programmes that function as frameworks for development visions and policies in each sector.

It also seeks to set a course for sustainable development in Jordan, arriving at a strong, resilient economy in the face of regional and global challenges. At the same time, it will enable the Kingdom to gradually reduce its dependence on assistance by expanding economic and investment opportunities, building an economy that offers enough job opportunities for young people and prospects to invest in human resources.

Moreover, the plan envisions the upgrading of government institutions to enable them to offer high quality services to citizens with great efficiency.

In remarks at the meeting, King Abdullah stressed the need to ensure the plan’s success and that citizens will be able to sense its impact on improving their living conditions, calling for serious work to translate it into procedures.

His Majesty said all must utilise their resources to bring the plan into fruition, achieving the goals of reducing the debt, providing job opportunities, and increasing incomes.

Speed in actual implementation, and the commitment of all parties, especially the government, the King continued, is the key to success and the way forward to achieve sustainable development.

His Majesty stressed that this new plan will build on the Jordan 2025 Vision and help achieve its goals, offering a reference point for assessing progress and achievements, since current growth rates are much lower than those listed in the vision’s goals.

For Jordan to reduce its debt, increase income levels, and create more job opportunities, the King said, the only option is to implement the plans and programmes prepared in cooperation with the international community, Jordanian expatriates and businessmen, and Arab and foreign investors.

This will enable Jordan to achieve its goals on its own despite all hurdles, His Majesty added, noting that this is what the plan is about.

The King called for setting assessment criteria, urging the Economic Policies Council to follow up on the plan’s implementation in cooperation with the government.

His Majesty stressed that all are responsible for this.

Jordan’s embassies and ambassadors, the King said, should play a more active economic role, adding that this is a priority at this stage.

Praising the joint efforts by the government and the Council to prepare this plan, His Majesty called for informing the public of its goals and the progress of implementation.

For his part, Prime Minister Hani Mulki stressed that the government is fully committed to implementing the Jordan Economic Growth Plan, out of its conviction that it is necessary and important for achieving national economic resilience over the next five years.

The plan, Mulki added, is a complementary element required to bolster economic growth, as is the fiscal reform programme.

He noted that clear measures will be drawn up to implement the plan, since it tackles all vital economic sectors, stressing that specialists from all government institutions will be following up on the implementation of its programmes.

The government, Mulki added, will cooperate with the Economic Policies Council to monitor the progress of the plan’s execution by holding meetings every two months to look into what has been done and what will be addressed next.

The growth plan, which is the fruit of collaborative efforts between the council and the concerned government agencies, is expected to double economic growth rates over the next five years, if implemented successfully by the government, which would reduce the debt, provide job opportunities, and increase income levels.

The plan details the required changes—including policies, government projects, or public-private investment partnerships—that must be implemented to instigate growth in various sectors.

It builds on efforts over the past few years to develop comprehensive and sectoral strategies, based on the royal vision outlined in the Letter of Designation to the government, the National Strategy for Human Resources Development, “REACH 2025: Jordan’s Digital Economy Action Plan”, “Jordan 2025: A National Vision and Strategy”, and the recommendations of the Royal Committee for Developing the Judiciary and Enhancing the Rule of Law.

The plan covers 19 fields and sectors of reform, identifying 95 measures for economic reform and 85 government projects at a cost of around JD6.9 billion.

It also highlights 27 investment opportunities for the private sector worth around JD9.5 billion in total.

It encompasses key economic sectors and drivers of growth—energy, water, commerce, industry, transport, tourism, construction, agriculture, infrastructure, specialised vocational services, entrepreneurship and small- and medium-sized enterprises, and the social and service sector, including health and education.

The blueprint also comes in parallel with the fiscal reform programme implemented by the government to achieve sustainable growth rates, ensuring fiscal discipline and reducing the public debt, which—in turn—would boost the competitiveness of the economy, enhance the business environment, and enable investments in available opportunities.

If the strategies detailed in the plan are successfully implemented, they will contribute to improving citizens’ living conditions; enhancing infrastructure and transport; diversifying sources of energy, water, and food security; improving the quality of educational and healthcare services; enabling the gradual shift to a digital economy and digitised government services; developing the governorates and supporting local communities; and providing new job opportunities for young people.

For their part, members of the Economic Policies Council stressed the need to implement the plan on the ground and ensure government coordination with the private sector.

They also called for securing funds for the outlined projects, noting that the plan hinges on activating the role of the private sector and attracting investments.

They urged boldness, responsibility, and swiftness in decision making by those tasked with implementing the plan, particularly in the middle management.

Moreover, they called for addressing the situation of distressed companies and updating various laws, noting that a package of economic laws is awaiting parliamentary discussion.

They also stressed the need to set frameworks to encourage public-private partnerships to ensure the successful funding of projects and attract investments.

In a letter to PM Mulki last June, His Majesty had issued directives to form the Economic Policies Council.

The Council’s mission is to discuss economic policies, programmes and development plans in various sectors; identify the main constraints holding back economic growth; and propose solutions to overcome them.

In the letter, His Majesty said the Council will be supporting the government's efforts to overcome economic difficulties, invest in opportunities, achieve higher growth rates, and enhance the competitiveness of the national economy.

The Economic Policies Council includes the prime minister, and representatives of the economic committees of the Senate and the House of Representatives, the Central Bank of Jordan, the Social Security Investment Fund, chambers of commerce and industry, and business leaders from the private sector.

Royal Hashemite Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh and Director of the Office of His Majesty Jafar Hassan also attended the meeting.