Jordan Times
Friday, February 16, 2007
ASEZA ups investments target
to $12b by 2020
By Khalid Neimat, Jordan Times
AQABA, February 16 — After reaching $8 billion in 2007, officials of Aqaba
Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) aim to attract $12 billion in
investments by the year 2020 under a new strategy.
“The major challenge facing Aqaba in the coming years is to provide adequate
infrastructure to meet the increasing demand on investments,” Chief Commissioner
Nader Dahabi told reporters during a press conference on Thursday.
ASEZA's first strategy aimed at attracting $6 billion in investments by the year
2020, but now the amount already exceeds this figure by 133 per cent. “That is
why we think to up-date our strategy,” Dahabi said.
Three days of celebrations marked ASEZA's sixth anniversary this week with the
participation of more than 250 local, regional and international journalists.
The guests toured Aqaba on Thursday and were briefed on the ongoing projects and
the planned ones. They visited several real estate and tourism projects
including, Saraya Aqaba, Ayla, Tala Bay and Saraya Workers Housing.
The visitors also toured the southern part of the city, visiting the main port,
the logistic area, and were briefing on the future plans for this area which is
now 12-kilometers long on the Red Sea, facing the Egyptian and Israeli beaches.
ASEZA has divided Aqaba into three major zones: The northern one, which is
planned to focus on the tourism activities, the southern one which is for
industrial and logistics activities, and the heart of the city for the trading
and services, according to the ASEZA chief.
Developing the local community in Aqaba is a priority for ASEZA, according to
Dahabi. “Raising the living standards of Aqaba residents and enhancing their
skills have topped our list in ASEZA for six years,” the official stated.
Dahabi officially announced a Karameh housing project, which would cost
JD21million. It is financed by the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development under a loan
agreement for 25 years at a low interest rate.
The objective of this new project is to relocate 10,000 persons living currently
in a very unhealthy and unorganized area called Shalalat, in the heart of the
city, to this new location.
In 2001, there were only 50,000 persons living in the Aqaba city, but within six
years this figure doubled, reaching 100,000 persons this year.