(MENAFN- Jordan News Agency) Amman May 5 (Petra) --The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Wednesday held a reception marking its 25th anniversary in the Kingdom one of the bank’s youngest countries of operations since its establishment in 1991.
The event was attended by Mayor of the Greater Amman MunicipalityAkel Biltaji and a number of representatives of EBRD and its partners in the country. Building on its experience in eastern Europe and Central Asia the bank extended its support to Jordan in 2011 in response to the international effort to address the radical changes in the Arab world.
The EBRD has since invested €550 million across 27 projects in various sectors of the Jordanian economy. In addition the bank has also issued €125 million of trade facilitation guarantees to local banks to promote the country’s foreign trade.
"These four years are part of the bank’s 25 years of successful support for emerging economies now spanning three continents. Fostering the role of the private sector in Jordan is a key priority for the bank and the local authorities" said EBRD Head of Office in Jordan Heike Harmgart.
"Through our investment we focus on financing small and medium-sized enterprises the diversification of energy sources using the country’s potential for solar and wind power and the development of infrastructure and municipal services. This is especially pertinent and urgent now given the pressures caused by the refugee crisis" she added.
Addressing a key issue in Jordan to help alleviate the strain on water resources the EBRD provided a loan up to US$ 14 million and mobilized US$ 5.5 million in grants to the Water Authority of Jordan (WAJ) to carry out an urgently needed upgrade of the sewerage network. The investment will increase the network’s capacity and reduce the risk of water pollution in the Zarqa area.
The bank aims also at enhancing energy sustainability through investing US$ 75 million in multiple solar photovoltaic power plants in the Kingdom in 2014. It also continued to promote energy efficiency programs and contribute to policy reforms.
Boosting the role of the private sector in Jordan is one of the ways in which the EBRD is facilitating access to finance for local small businesses the bank official added.
The skills mismatch in the labour market can be addressed through financing vocational training to provide substantial skills transfer at a dedicated on-site training facility. "This approach allows the bank to promote inclusive growth and greater participation by women and youth in the workforce" she further explained.
Through the EBRD’s Small Business Support the bank has also initiated 145 technical assistance projects that directly benefited the country’s small and medium-sized enterprises.
"We are looking forward to further cooperation and future challenges and opportunities in Jordan" Harmgart concluded.
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