Jordan Times
Wednesday, December 1, 2004
Researchers analyse effect of
war in Iraq on economy
By Mahmoud Al Abed
AMMAN — Despite the JD190-200 million loss to the state budget caused by the end
of the Iraqi oil grant, Jordan was able to gain from the postwar situation in
Iraq, a workshop was told on Tuesday.
Besides the oil grant loss, Royal Scientific
Society (RSS) researcher Abdul Salam Nueimat mentioned losses related to a
decline in the shipments to Iraq via Aqaba Port and a drop in tax and fees
revenues on transport in addition to exports to Iraq. Nueimat said in his
working paper entitled “The Impact of the Iraqi Situation on Government Public
Revenues,” that the losses were partly offset by “exceptional but unsustainable”
foreign assistance.
At the workshop, organised by the RSS in cooperation with Frederich Ebert
Stiftung Foundation, the researcher pointed to an increase in public revenues
from taxes and fees on Iraqi purchases in Jordan, remarkably real estate, in
addition to the fees imposed on residence permits collected from tens of
thousands of Iraqis who fled the war scene and resided in Jordan.
Data provided by the Land and Survey Department show the Iraqis topping the list
of foreign buyers of real estate in Jordan as the sector witnessed a boom after
the Iraqi war.
But despite the war and the halt in the oil flow from Iraq, the neighbour kept
its status as the second trade partner of Jordan after the US, according to
Ubeid Rodan.
In his paper presented at the workshop, Rodan indicated that Jordan's exports to
the war-torn neighbour stood at JD254 million in the first eight months of the
current year, a 164 per cent rise over the figure during the same period in
2003, the year of the war.
The share of Iraq's imports from Jordan stands currently at 17.5 per cent,
according to Rodan who is also a researcher at the RSS. In light of the
noticeable rising trend, the flow of Jordanian products to Iraq is expected to
regain its prewar levels, he remarked.
In a third paper presented during the one-day workshop, Tayel Hajji advised
Jordanian officials to work on diversifying sources of energy, modify
consumption patterns and structures and go ahead with exploration plans in a bid
to stand up to the serious energy challenge.
He stressed that the country cannot depend forever for its oil needs on grants
and preferential treatment by Arab oil-producing countries.
The fourth paper dealt with the impact of the Iraq war on the transport sector
in the Kingdom. Researcher Muhannad Sahawneh underlined the key role played by
Aqaba Port as the conduit for transit good bound for Iraq. He noted that each
tonne of goods handled by the port earns the national economy JD18.