Blueprint for a better future

His Majesty King Abdullah has instructed the government to draw up and adopt a 10-year comprehensive and multifaceted blueprint for economic development to improve the financial health of the country and address existing woes and hardships facing it. 

In a letter to Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour, the King made it crystal clear right at the outset that the ultimate objective of this exercise is to secure a decent standard of living for Jordanians, boost the national economy and enhance its financial standing. 

Given the fact that the high cost of living has hit many Jordanians and unemployment is still high, the economic blueprint, the King said, should zero in on these issues. 

He chronicled a list of challenges and obstacles facing the country, among which are the repeated disruptions in the supply of Egyptian natural gas and the presence of more than 1,300,000 Syrian brethren in the country, which is taxing the infrastructure to the limit and forcing Jordan to incur heavy financial burdens.

These challenges, coupled with the Kingdom’s limited natural resources, have imposed unbearable economic, financial and social pressures. 

The Monarch said the proposed economic roadmap for the next decade “should have a comprehensive framework”, stressing that the success of devising this blueprint hinges on adopting a participatory and consultative approach towards all stakeholders, namely governmental institutions, Parliament, the private sector, civil society organisations and local communities”. 

The end game, the King pointed out, is a stronger economy based on higher productivity, efficiency and competitiveness with the aim of making Jordan stronger and more self reliant.

King Abdullah has thus presented the government with a daunting economic agenda to complement the political progress already achieved over the past few years. 

Given the fact that the completion of the reform process and economic progress with a human face are two sides of the same coin, the government must now turn its attention to long-term economic planning to provide a solid base for its democratisation achievements. 

The requested plan of action, the King warned, must not rest in files destined for oblivion. Rather it should be of the kind that is implementable and operational. 

The government has done well politically, and it can do well also in the economic field.