King visits Zarqa, meets notables

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday highlighted the importance of the Jordanian-Egyptian-Iraqi partnership to provide opportunities for Arab countries to expand cooperation and serve the interests and causes of the Arab nation.

During a visit to Deifallah Al Gallab’s residence in Zarqa, His Majesty met with notables from the governorate. The King stressed that projects and investments from regional countries and others in Jordan help address the Kingdom’s poverty and unemployment issues. 

King Abdullah also said that US companies expressed interest in focusing on medical tourism in the Kingdom.

Speaking of the reopening of sectors, the King said that the process is based on studies by committees that were formed for the purpose.

His Majesty noted that Jordan has dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic with transparency from its onset. 

The King pointed out that “we have learned a lot from the pandemic”, especially in terms of enhancing the capabilities of the medical sector and technical specialisations, such as ICU administration. 

Replying to questions from attendees, King Abdullah stressed that the ICT sector in the Kingdom has managed to attract new investments during the pandemic and continues to move forward in the development process, highlighting the sector’s significant contribution to job creation.

For their part, the attendees highlighted the importance of attracting investments to the governorate and the important role investments play in providing jobs and addressing poverty and unemployment.

They also said that providing training programmes for youth and women helps them enter the labour market and start small- and medium-sized businesses, which improves the economy.

The attendees also voiced support for the political reform efforts, especially the endeavours of the Royal Committee to Modernise the Political System. 

They referred to the significance of moving forward in the reform and de-centralisation process with a focus on administrative reform and training of mid-level employees in the public sector to assume leadership posts.

They also expressed appreciation of His Majesty’s direct contact with Jordanian people and his directives to implement projects that meet citizens’ needs.

The attendees voiced support for King Abdullah’s efforts to enhance Jordan’s presence at the regional and international levels and his unaltered positions towards the Palestinian issue, Jerusalem and Islamic and Christian holy sites in the city.