Jordan Times
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
First Competitiveness Report
for 2007 pinpoints challenges to better ranking
AMMAN (JT) - Planning and International Cooperation Minister Suhair Al-Ali
mentioned the need to channel investments towards the fastest producing sectors,
the importance of resolving issues related to brain drain and developing
education and vocational outputs in line with market requirements as the
challenges to improve Jordan’s global competitiveness ranking.
The minister was speaking on Monday at the launch of the National
Competitiveness Observatory and Jordan’s First Competitiveness Report for 2007,
held under the patronage of Prime Minister Nader Dahabi and in the presence of
various representatives from the government, private sector, embassies,
international organisations and donor community.
The minister stated that despite the challenges outlined in the report, there is
a real opportunity to increase Jordan’s competitiveness during the next five
years.
“This can be achieved through continued reform of the legislative and legal
framework in line with international best practices, especially with regards to
procedures related to starting a business, licensing and accreditation,
registering property, a skilled labour force, directing investment, building
infrastructure, enforcing contracts, linking the output of the education system
with labour market needs, as well as increased investment in research and
development and technology transfer,” she said.
In his opening address, the prime minister reiterated the government’s
commitment to further enhance the business climate in the Kingdom and increase
economic competitiveness locally, regionally and internationally.
“The launch of the National Competitiveness Observatory is a step forward
towards this goal and the government is seeking to institutionalise this
national effort in order to continue monitoring and measuring competitiveness of
all sectors,” Dahabi said.
The prime minister emphasised the important role that the private sector plays
in increasing the competitiveness of various sectors, indicating that the
government will continue to adopt a partnership approach to achieve shared goals
of competitiveness and prosperity.
Al-Ali described the observatory as an important tool for increasing the
competitiveness of both the public and private sectors.
She said that the observatory, the first of its kind in the region, takes
assessment of Jordan’s competitive performance a step further by developing an
institutionalised system, which continuously assesses and measures through
evaluating the competitiveness of industries and the environment in which they
operate.
Developed through a joint effort between the Ministry of Planning and
International Cooperation and the private sector, the observatory will work as
one of the main reference points in terms of signaling changes at the sectoral
level to decision makers and stakeholders in the private sector.
The observatory, she said, will measure and monitor Jordan’s competitiveness
based on a set of indicators which will enable the assessment of the macro- and
microeconomic performance of the country, and provide policymakers and
businessmen with a comprehensive and accurate evaluation of the current state of
Jordanian firms and industries, and the condition of the business environment
they operate in.
The launch also included a presentation of various accomplishments related to
Jordan’s competitiveness in a number of sectors including pharmaceuticals,
tourism, medical tourism, information technology and higher education.
The minister indicated that the framework to institutionalise the observatory is
being developed under the directions of the prime minister in order to provide
an effective instrument which monitors, upgrades, and sustains competitiveness
of Jordanian sectors, in order to realise His Majesty King Abdullah II’s vision
of a modern and knowledge-based economy.