Jordan allocates JD5 million to rural financing programme to boost local development

AMMAN — Minister of Agriculture and Chairman of the Agricultural Credit Corporation (ACC) Khaled Hneifat has approved the allocation of JD5 million from the 2025 lending plan for the Rural Financing Programme.

This initiative targets resident of Jordan's rural and desert areas, and impoverished people, aimed to foster development in these regions and create permanent job opportunities.

According to a statement issued by the Ministry on Thursday, the decision aligns with the Economic Modernisation Vision, the National Sustainable Agriculture Plan, and the pillar of rural development, empowering women, and enhancing agricultural product marketing.

Hneifat said that the Rural Financing Program seeks to improve the quality of projects that provide local job opportunities, generate appropriate returns, and establish marketing channels and services for plant and animal agricultural activities.

He highlighted that the program focuses on unemployed women and youth in rural and desert areas, offering funding of up to JD10,000 with a profit rate of 2.5 per cent.

The projects include olive production and marketing, grain-related projects, date production and marketing, and the sale and marketing of vegetable and fruit products.

He added that the programme encompasses productive kitchens, scented candle manufacturing, handcrafted wooden, stone, and ceramic items, as well as chocolate and ice cream production based on agricultural products.

 It also includes projects for recycling and marketing agricultural waste, and marketing products derived from sheep, cattle, camels, rabbits, poultry processing, table eggs, and fresh, chilled, and frozen chicken meat.

He also noted the enterprises target manufacturing production inputs used in the Kingdom's agricultural industry in its various forms.