Gov’t economic team to visit ‘promising’ institutions

AMMAN — Prime Minister Hani Mulki on Thursday chaired a meeting of the government's economic team, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The economic task force announced field visits to "promising sectors" of the national economy. 

The visits, scheduled over two weeks, will include companies and institutions that contribute to economic development in the sectors of tourism, such as the Royal Jordanian Airlines, mining, including the phosphate and potash company, and electricity

The premier said the visits seek to review the institutions' achievements, future plans, and needs.

The announcement came following a series of meetings held by the economic team to discuss a general framework of measures and policies to stimulate economy growth, improve business environment and attract investments.

The meeting also covered the smuggling of goods from free and development zones, stressing the importance of tighter control to prevent the negative impacts of such illegal activities on the national economy.

According to a report of Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA), the number of smuggling cases increased from 47 in 2014 to 502 in 2015-2016, with the value of fines rising from JD7 million in 2014 to JD225 million in 2015-2016, Petra said.