His Majesty King Abdullah on Tuesday emphasised the need to seriously and swiftly respond to investors’ demands to enable them to expand their projects in the Kingdom.

At a meeting with Arab and foreign investors, King Abdullah stressed the importance of investment in creating job opportunities and achieving growth, urging authorities to offer investors all facilities and guidance.

In addition, the King urged investors to determine the priorities that need to be addressed by authorities, and directed the government to prepare a strategy to enhance foreign investment in the Kingdom.

Reaching out to investors to identify and address flaws in the investment promotion process comes at a time when Jordan is seriously pursuing economic and political reform, the King said. The aim, he added, is to forge partnerships between the private and public sectors and empower the private sector, Arab and foreign investors to play an influential role in the sustainable development of the country.

The King expressed his optimism over Jordan’s economic outlook, saying that the future holds “encouraging and rewarding opportunities”.

His Majesty also noted that more work needs to be done to stimulate the economy and combat unemployment, which he described as one of the largest challenges facing the country.

The King also pointed out that amidst regional turbulence and instability, Jordan has remained a pioneer in political, economic and social reforms.

For their part, investors representing the industry, mining, banking, transportation, communication and information technology sectors stressed that despite the huge challenges facing the region, Jordan remains a “strategic” destination, with an “encouraging and attractive” investment climate.

They voiced commitment to proceed with their investment plans and said they consider Jordan a gate to the region, and namely Iraq.

They called on authorities to accelerate measures and decisions related to their businesses in Jordan, especially legal procedures.

Minister of Industry and Trade Hani Mulki indicated that the government is fully aware of investors’ concerns, blaming regional developments for Jordan’s failure to realise its full potential this year.

Mulki added that the government has enacted new pieces of legislation to accelerate measures and stimulate the investment environment, foremost of which was the Investment Law.