Japan provides $110 million budgetary support loan to Jordan

AMMAN — Jordan and Japan on Thursday signed memoranda of understanding for a soft loan to support the Kingdom's General Budget with 15 billion Japanese yen (equivalent to some $110 million), according to a Planning Ministry statement.

These MoUs are part of pledges from the Japanese government to the Jordanian government that were made during the London Conference in 2019 offering soft loans of up to $300 million between 2021 and 2023, the statement said.

Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Zeina Toukan, Japanese Ambassador to Jordan Okuyama Jiro and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Senior Vice President Ando Naoki signed the agreement. 

The soft loan aims to support the General Budget, and specifically for the development of the energy sector in order to ensure sustainability of the electricity supply, improve governance in the sector. The loan will also support the preparation of the national electricity strategy and technical and advisory study requirements on regional connectivity in the sector, the statement said.

On the sidelines of the signing ceremony, ministry officials held a meeting with the Japanese representatives to acquaint them with the top priorities of the executive programme for 2023-2025 in various sectors.

The JICA senior vice president praised the "historic" relations between the two countries, shedding light on the importance of this loan in meeting financial needs for fiscal year 2022 in Jordan.

“Japan, by extending this loan, recognises the Jordanian Government’s comprehensive reform efforts which encompass the Economic Modernisation Vision, launched last June by His Majesty King Abdullah under the slogan ‘A Better Future’,” the Japanese ambassador said during the ceremony, according to a Japanese embassy statement.

At the end of the meeting, ministry officials voiced Jordan's appreciation of Japan for the continuous support, and for Tokyo's understanding of the economic challenges facing the Kingdom that came as a result of external crises.