President of Jordanian Businessmen Association (JBA), Hamdi Tabbaa, discussed with Cypriot ambassador to Jordan, Michalis Ioannou, ways to strengthen joint economic ties, investment opportunities in “promising” economic sectors, and developing relations between the the two countries’ business communities.
According to a JBA statement on Thursday, Tabbaa stressed the association’s efforts to consolidate Jordan’s economic, trade and investment relations with the world, and its “constant” keenness to promote investment for the Kingdom’s key available investor opportunities, aimed to turning them into economically feasible projects.
Tabbaa also noted JBA’s desire to strengthen Jordanian-Cypriot economic relations in various economic sectors of common interest, adding that Jordan’s market enjoys multiple privileges, especially its commercial openness and its several trade agreements signed with various countries at the Arab and international levels.
He stressed need to increase volume of Jordan-Cyprus trade exchange and diversify export base of goods and services.
Meanwhile, Cypriot envoy expressed the embassy’s readiness to cooperate with JBA to push bilateral relations to “broader” horizons, pointing to desire of Cypriot businesspeople and investors to invest in Jordan, to benefit from its “attractive” investment privileges.
The diplomat also affirmed desire to increase volume of Jordanian investments in Cyprus, as it has multiple sectors with “remarkable” invest privileges in various sectors, lauding level of bilateral relations.
Ioannou called on establishing a Jordanian-Cypriot Business Council to increase networking of the two countries’ business communities and organize a Jordanian-Cypriot Investment Business Forum during 2023.
This future effort should target tourism sector, construction and real estate, pharmaceutical and medical care fields, communications and information technology (CIT) sectors, and chemical industries, the envoy said.
The two sides discussed a slew of issues of concern to the two countries’ business communities, stressing need for cooperation in exchanging visits of joint trade delegations and organizing business forums and exhibitions to introduce the two nations’ available economic opportunities, the statement said.
Volume of Jordan-Cyprus trade exchange in 2021 amounted to $16.8 million, of which exports accounted for $2.8 million, concentrated in inorganic chemicals and plastics, while imports reached $14 million, mainly pharmaceutical products, and foodstuff products, primarily dairy products, official data showed.