OBG talks to Awni Al Rushoud, Acting CEO, Jordan Investment Board

Interview: Awni Al Rushoud

In light of the challenging economic environment, how is the Jordan Investment Board developing strategy to encourage foreign direct investment?

AWNI AL RUSHOUD: Despite the continued turbulence fac-ing the region, we are optimistic about the investment environment. In fact, over JD1.6bn ($2.3bn) in invest-ments were registered at the One Stop Shop at the Jor-dan Investment Board in 2012. This represents an increase of more than 58% compared to figures over the same period in 2011. Furthermore, in the first two months of 2013, nearly JD500m ($704m) were already registered. Domestic investments (JD796.7m, $1.1bn) continued their solid performance, growing by 9.4% over 2012, demonstrating the soundness and resilience of the Jordanian economy and the abundance of invest-ment opportunities. More significant is the change in foreign investments (JD817.6m, $1.1bn), which grew by 177.6% over the last year. This highlights the trust that foreign investors have in the Jordanian investment envi-ronment and the success of the country's economic reform plans. There are a few factors that play a role in shaping the attractive investment atmosphere. First, Jordan enjoys a great amount of security and political stability. Second, the business environment in Jordan, in general, has been vastly improved over the course of the last decade, with strong efforts to improve infra-structure, and with the implementation of more bilat-eral agreements and free trade agreements (FTAs) with a number of countries, including the US, Canada, Sin-gapore and Turkey, as well as our relations with GAFTA (Greater Arab Free Trade Area). Jordan also has an EU Association Agreement that gives it free trade access to all 27 countries of the EU. These will provide a plat-form to open new markets for Jordanian products and services and help in increasing trade in the years ahead.

Which segments of the Jordanian economy are tar-gets for more investment?

AL RUSHOUD: The main areas of the economy that the Jordan Investment Board focuses on include the information and communication technology (ICT) sec-tor, business process outsourcing (BPO), energy initia-tives, tourism, health care and pharmaceuticals. Jordan maintains an edge in terms of qualified human capital with the highest rate of engineers and doctors per capita in the region, in addition to competitive labour costs. The ICT and BPO sectors benefit from well-edu-cated, bilingual employees, capable of handling work in Arabic and English. In addition, graduates are well equipped to enter the workforce due to the high qual-ity of education they receive from universities.

Moreover, regulations governing feed-in-tariffs have levelled the playing field in the renewable energy sec-tor and present great opportunities, especially in the fields of solar and wind power generation. There is great interest from foreign investors in exploring these projects. The local industry is also developing well, with local companies entering the value chain of building solar panels. This sector is of strategic importance as Jordan relies heavily on imports to satisfy its energy needs. Finally, the high concentration of qualified doc-tors and nursing staff is the key for Jordan to be the number-one regional destination for medical tourism.

There is ample room for more hospitals and medical centres, in addition to projects that combine medical tourism and rehabilitation with Jordan's natural sites.

How can Jordan better promote itself as a growing business destination for international companies?

AL RUSHOUD: The government has implemented a series of fiscal budget controls aimed at reducing pub-lic sector expenditures. This has greatly affected our ability to promote Jordan internationally and to partic-ipate in industry specific events.

Looking ahead, our plan for 2013 will focus on spe-cific companies and countries, allowing us to attract high-value investments. This is evidence of a solid busi-ness and investment environment in Jordan that is stable, secure and, above all, welcoming. Given this, the outlook for foreign investment looks very positive.