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ICT is one of Jordan’s fastest growing industries and penetration rates for internet and mobile phones remain high. Strong growth was recorded in 2013 in data services and smartphone sales, with 38% of the country’s mobile phone users owning a smartphone. The tech start-up sector is a leader in the Middle East but, while Jordan has been able to produce a large, skilled IT workforce, it has faced a problem of brain drain to more lucrative markets in the past. In an effort to combat this, on-the-job training initiatives and government subsidised-programmes have been put in place to help retain the local IT workforce. Moreover, the success of tech start-ups like social media platform Sowt is encouraging many young IT professionals to put their skills to use at home This chapter contains an interview with Azzam Sleit, Minister of Information, Communications and Technologies.

Tourism accounts for 14% of Jordan’s GDP, with receipts in 2014 up 10% year-on-year. Efforts are under way to diversify Jordan’s tourism offerings with an emphasis being placed on religious tourism, aimed particularly at visitors from East Asia, while Jordan’s medical infrastructure remains one of the country’s most valuable tourism assets with the World Bank ranking Jordan the top medical tourism destination in the Middle East and fifth in the world in 2011. Adventure and eco-tourism is also on the rise, as part of the kingdom’s wider push to attract younger visitors. Meanwhile, new luxury developments in the Gulf of Aqaba and the Dead Sea demonstrate Jordan’s intention of establishing itself as a major holiday destination in the region. This chapter contains an interview with Nidal Katamine, Minister of Tourism and Antiquities.

Jordan’s banking sector, with its diverse array of financial institutions, continued to perform robustly over the past year. In the first half of 2013 non-performing loans dropped to their lowest level since 2009 while the Islamic financial services segment has continued to grow, increasingly seeking out business from small and medium-sized enterprises as well as from the retail sector. In May 2014 the Central Bank of Jordan issued a new set of instructions in line with Basel III standards aimed at ensuring responsible corporate governance within the sector. This chapter contains interviews with Ziad Fariz, Governor, Central Bank of Jordan; and Nemeh Sabbagh, CEO, Arab Bank.

The IMF has forecast Jordan’s GDP to expand by 3.5% in 2014 and the government remains committed to tackling long term structural issues in the economy including reducing the fiscal deficit. The role of the private sector is being boosted, particularly with regard to government support for SMEs. Stronger economic ties with Iraq have led to proposals for a Basra-Aqaba pipeline and this, along with the completion of the Aqaba liquefied gas facility next year, is expected to help address the kingdom’s heavy reliance on energy imports. Jordan’s membership in the Greater Arab Free Trade Area offers local companies advantageous access to 17 markets across the Middle East and North Africa, while free trade agreements with countries further afield such as Singapore and Canada offer global opportunities. This chapter contains interviews with Umayya Toukan, Minister of Finance; Ibrahim Saif, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation; and Awni Rushoud, Investment Commissioner, Investment Commission.

Efforts to boost trading in Bahrain have been focused on corporate structuring, through a plan that includes overhauled regulation and a restructuring of the Bahrain Bourse to allow it to act with greater speed and flexibility. Initial public offerings are set to increase as moves toward privatisation continue, while small and medium-sized enterprises are on course to benefit from new listing procedures such as increased use of online trading and improved regulation and trading rules for the bourse. This chapter includes an interview with Fouad Rashid, Director, Bahrain Bourse.