Industrial sectors benefit from ‘principle of reciprocity’ — stakeholder

AMMAN — Several industrial sectors have started to “feel a tangible positive impact” in light of the government's decision to adopt the principle of reciprocity regarding Syrian commodities entering the Kingdom and treat them the same as Syria treats Jordanian products. 

During a press conference held on Sunday at the Amman Chamber of Industry (ACI) , President of the ACI and President of the Jordan Chamber of Industry Fathi Jaghbir said that demand on various local products has increased, commending the decision. 

At the press conference, attended by members of the board of directors of both chambers, Jaghbir said that the decision was taken under a request from the industrial sector several months ago because importing Syrian products had a negative effect on local products. 

The decision was not only applied to Syria, but also extended to Turkey after it cancelled the free trade agreement with the Kingdom last year, Jaghbir said, noting that the positive impact has become apparent. 

The ACI president requested that the government continues with this approach, reviewing and evaluating all free trade agreements between Jordan and other countries, and the repercussions of implementing them on national industries in order to take any necessary measures to protect local products and boost competitiveness. 

"The ACI board has followed up on hindrances facing Jordanian exports to several main and potential markets," Jaghbir said, noting that the chamber has prepared a complete document through its observations on the main obstacles facing Jordanian exports to the markets, especially in regards to administrative measures and customs. 

The chamber then referred the document to the government in order to work on those issues, so that if the countries involved in the agreements do not respond, similar measures will be taken against their exports to Jordan.

In spite of the existence of the Greater Arab Free Trade Area (GAFTA) agreement and bilateral agreements between Jordan and various countries, there still remains violation against the priority of Jordanian products' entry to some markets, Jaghbir said.

He added that this contradicts the agreement articles that entail facilitating and growing commercial exchange between GAFTA member states as well as other multi-lateral agreements.

In this regard, he said that some countries singled themselves out of the free trade agreements, imposing customs fees or other administrative fees that limit the possibility of entry for Jordanian products to their markets. 

Jaghbir also reviewed the experience of Jordanian industrialists in exporting to the Egyptian market, for which they have to pre-register at the involved Egyptian institutions or request documents that the Jordanian government does not issue, such as a factory's licence, as part of the exportation documents, while the Ministry of Industry issues a registration certificate and not a licence.

He also highlighted several other challenges that imposed financial burdens on exports.

Jaghbir cited Department of Statistics figures showing that Jordan has lost around 85 per cent of its exports to Syria in the past six years, and in spite of the reopening of the Jordanian-Syrian border, the exports to Syria still face several hindrances, most notably the Syrian government's prevention of importing certain products with the pretext of wanting to protect their own national products.

The Syrian authorities now only allow importing certain industrial or agricultural products, under the condition that the Syrian trader or agent obtains certain approvals from the authorities first. 

The ACI president thus highlighted the importance of building commercial relations between Jordan and different countries around the world, especially countries in the region, based on mutual benefit without restrictions or hindrances. 

The chamber also mentioned that the commercial exchange volume between Jordan and Syrian during the first eight months of 2019 stood at JD59.7 million, while with Egypt it stood at JD298.5 million.