EBRD First Vice President visits Jordan, West Bank, Gaza

AMMAN — Jürgen Rigterink, first Vice President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), will pay a two-day visit to the West Bank and Gaza from beginning on Monday, followed by a two-day visit to Jordan from October 26 to 27.

Rigterink will be joined by Heike Harmgart, EBRD Managing Director for the Southern and Eastern Mediterranean (SEMED) region, and Philip ter Woort, Director for the Eastern Mediterranean Region, according to a statement from EBRD.

In Ramallah, Rigterink will meet with Minister of National Economy, Khaled Osaily, and Deputy Governor of the Palestinian Monetary Authority, Mohammad Manasrah. The visit will also include meetings with local partner banks and international financial institutions.

The mission will conclude in Jordan, which the Vice President is visiting for the second time since 2018, when he attended the EBRD’s Annual Meeting at the Dead Sea.

During his visit to the Kingdom, Rigterink will meet Prime Minister Bisher Al Khasawneh, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation and EBRD Governor Nasser Shraideh, Minister of Energy, Saleh Al Kharabsheh, and the Governor of the Central Bank of Jordan, Adel Al Sharkas.

In Amman, he will also meet representatives of international financial institutions and the business community. In addition, the Vice President will sign two credit lines with Cairo Amman Bank: one for its Jordanian operations, to support investments in the green economy, and one for its branch in the West Bank and Gaza, to support small and medium-sized businesses, including those led by women, the statement said.

Since 2012, the EBRD has provided more than 1.8 billion euro in financing through 66 projects in Jordan, including financial support for the country’s banking sector through loans to micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises and through subordinated debt and trade finance facilities.