Amman-Doha talks under way to speed up recruitment of Jordanians

AMMAN — Jordan and Qatar on Sunday agreed to accelerate implementation of a Doha initiative to provide 10,000 jobs for Jordanians.

Following his meeting with Qatari Prime Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Nasser Bin Khalifa Al Thani in Doha, Labour Minister Nidal Bataineh said that the number of jobs in various fields could even exceed 10,000.

The two countries’ labour ministers announced the initiative in July 2018 at a joint press conference. In early August 2018, the Labour Ministry launched the Jordanian-Qatari online platform www.jqpee.jo to allow Jordanian candidates to apply for jobs in the Gulf country.

During the meeting, the two sides touched on means of advancing bilateral ties, in addition to discussing various issues of common interest, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The Qatari prime minister expressed keenness on expanding Jordanian-Qatari ties in various fields, mainly in the labour field.

Describing Amman-Doha ties as "good and fruitful", Bataineh expressed thanks for Qatar’s efforts in providing 10,000 jobs for Jordanians.

Bataineh also discussed fields of joint cooperation with Qatari Minister of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs Yousuf Fakhroo. The latter attributed the delay in Jordanian recruitment to the Qatari private sector's limited access to recruitment e-platforms. 

This problem is to be solved by creating a national platform for recruitment as an alternative to the Qatari-Jordanian platform, which gives the private sector access.

Urging for recruitments to be accelerated, Bataineh said that only 2,800 Jordanians have acquired jobs through the Qatari-Jordanian platform.

To speed up the implementation, the two sides agreed on holding a meeting with the Qatari private sector within two weeks, with the aim of promoting the recruitment platform, Petra added.