King orders projects in Tafileh to empower community

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday met with local community leaders from Tafileh, as part of His Majesty's policy of communicating with Jordanians from across the board, the Royal Court said in a statement.

During the meeting, held at the Royal Court, the King responded to the representatives’ requests and comments and directed the government to carry out projects that serve the community in Tafileh, around 180km south of Amman.

His Majesty directed the government to accelerate the construction of Tafileh industrial estate and complete the project in 2017, noting that a garment factory in the town of Bseira in the governorate will absorb 300 women workers, who will join 400 peers currently working there.

The King also underlined a plan to accelerate works at  the new hospital in Tafileh to have it fully functioning in three years.

Meanwhile, he stressed the importance of supporting the agricultural sector and attracting more investments into the governorate through further support for productive projects and funding of small enterprises to empower targeted families and improve their incomes.

His Majesty reiterated that the economic situation is the main challenge for Jordan, stressing the importance of coordination among the state's institutions to determine the economic priorities for governorates during 2017-2018.

Parliament is expected to enact investment-related laws to attract more investments, thus creating more jobs for Jordanians, he said. 

Regarding national security, the Monarch reiterated his confidence in the Jordanian Armed Forces-Arab Army and the security bodies that are undergoing continuous improvements to enhance their performance.

The King thanked citizens and institutions that contributed to holding the Arab summit, commending the level of coordination among public and private institutions and among the military and security services.

The summit has contributed to bridging the gap between Arab countries and forging common visions to enhance pan-Arab action to deal with the region’s crises, His Majesty said, noting that the gathering witnessed important meetings between the participating leaders.

For his part, Royal Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh said that His Majesty had directed officials at the Royal Court to implement several initiatives to complement government measures and further serve the people of Tafileh.

The initiatives will focus on projects that enable households to establish their own small and medium businesses and increase their incomes.

The projects include funding of productive enterprises that target limited-income families, building 30 additional housing units for underprivileged families recommended by the Social Development Ministry, establishing a day centre for the rehabilitation of people with disabilities and rebuilding a number of public parks with recreational facilities and playgrounds for children.

Interior Minister Ghaleb Zu’bi outlined the government’s projects in Tafileh such as the Tafileh new hospital, whose cornerstone, he noted, will be laid on April 6 at a cost of JD43 million.

The minister announced that the JD2-million garment factory in Bseira is slated to be officially inaugurated on April 5.

Other projects include the expansion of Dana Reserve’s guesthouse, at a cost of JD1 million.

He also pointed to the under-construction Tafileh wastewater treatment plant, whose cost stood at JD21 million.

Some 45 per cent of the industrial estate has been accomplished with a total cost of JD6. 5 million, the minister noted, while a regeneration project in Tafileh’s downtown has almost been finalised with a total cost of JD8 million, adding that 30 per cent of the Sheikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Jaber Al Sabah School has been completed.

For their part, representatives of the local community and civil society institutions expressed appreciation for King Abdullah’s keenness to communicate with Jordanians at all levels and to listen to their concerns and challenges that face their regions, as well as his role in achieving sustainable security and development.

They presented various requests related to economic support to the local community and accelerating work in various vital projects such as the industrial estate and the hospital as well as increasing support for the Tafileh Technical University.