Jordan Times
Friday, May 16, 2008
Jordan ready to set up joint
free zone with Iraq at Karama border
By Linda Hindi
AMMAN - Jordan is ready to cooperate with Iraq for establishing a joint free
zone at the Karama border to ease the future flow of goods between the two
countries.
Free Zones Corporation Director General Mahmoud Qteishat described the trade
volume between investors from Jordan and Iraqi as “good”, expecting a sharp
increase in business if security prevails in the war-torn country.
Noting that investors conduct transit trade from Zarqa, Amman and Aqaba free
zone areas, Qteishat said: “The Karama border is just an additional trade point
that will not affect present zones. It only give the business person more
choice.” In a recent meeting with his Iraqi counterpart, Atef Abdel Khaleq, both
parties discussed the benefits of a joint free zone which would be attractive to
investors through tax exemptions and a speedy regulatory process. The area is
expected to create job opportunities, increase trade and attract local and
foreign investors.
The Jordanian-Iraqi Higher Committee introduced the idea around two years ago,
but the security situation in Iraq has slowed the progress since Iraqi committee
members were unable to make it to meetings.
The director general indicated that a few hundred dunums of land would be
allocated for the Jordan-Iraq free zone out of 1,200 dunums which are suitable
for use in the area that borders Iraq.
“As long as the security on the road from Amman to Baghdad keeps getting better,
business will improve,” he said.
Meanwhile, representatives from free zones in Dubai, Sharjah, Egypt, Lebanon,
Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, Oman, Iraq, Palestine, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi
Arabia and Libya, are scheduled to take part in the Free Zones Investment Forum
which will convene in Amman on May 28-29.
Investors from foreign countries like Britain and the United States are also
expected to take part in the forum which seeks to create a practical business
climate in the Arab free zones to attract different types of investment from all
over the world.
Free zones in Jordan started in 1973, where a small free zone was established in
Aqaba Port to develop the international commercial exchange and serve transit
trade. Since then, designated areas which are characterised by exemptions and
facilities to qualify it to be “investment attractive”, are considered a
development tool for the export industries, international trade exchange and
transit trade.
Deemed successful, the government established the Free Zones Corporation in 1976
as a governmental corporation with financial and administrative independence,
managed by a board of directors which is chaired by the minister of finance.