(MENAFN- Jordan News Agency)The National Council for Competitiveness and Innovation met on Saturday to discuss reforms that will be carried out in a stepped up effort involving the public and private sectors to enhance the investment climate in the Kingdom as a top national priority.
Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour, who chaired the meeting that was held at the prime minister's office, noted that the council had been rejuvenated to be more focused on improving the business climate, finding the means to increase activity in the various economic, productivity and service sectors and raising growth rates.
He said the council, which incorporates more than 18 institutions, entities and chambers representing the private sector, oversees economic activity in the Kingdom as a whole, not the competitiveness of a certain sector.
The premier noted that the council's mandate, part of the "Jordan 2025" blueprint, which was endorsed by all the levels of the decision-making process of the state, will continually be upgraded to draw up policies that contribute to improving the business environment in the country.
"The council's work, regardless its importance, does not seek to improve Jordan's rank in international criteria and reports, but to make real change happen as a merit in economic activity", added the prime minister.
The meeting tackled reforms that had been enacted to improve the business climate, particularly with regard to the duration of obtaining building licenses, which was reduced to seven days from 14 days, as well as easing other procedures related to property registration and electronic tax payment. The council underlined the importance of the pursuit of efforts by the governmental entities and the private sector to ensure the progress of work towards improving economic indicators and expediting proposed measures, adding that reforms should be limited to certain stages but rather ongoing and adaptable to developments.
Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Imad Fakhouri said in a press statement after the meeting that the council, which had been reinvigorated as a major platform to build a real public-private partnership, was a follow-up and a recommendation after the Jordan 2025 document was adopted. It also followed the new start Jordan had declared at the World Economic Forum that was held recently at the Dead Sea, he added.
Fakhouri said that the agenda in today's meeting included two major areas: following up on the first set of reforms "that we started work on to improve the business environment in a number of major developmental indicators and international reports indicators in such areas as construction licensing, starting business, access to credit and property and corporate registration as an initial sample in an institutionalized reform course the council will take". "We reviewed today the quick measures whose fruits can be reaped to start to improve our rankings in international competitiveness reports and to increase the competitiveness of our national economy", added Fakhouri.
The recently-formed council seeks to enhance the competitiveness of the economic sectors at local and international levels, support the private sector's role as a key partner in the Kingdom's development process and follow up on the implementation of the reforms needed to boost business competitiveness.
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