Egypt, Jordan PMs identify obstacles facing investors

CAIRO - 4 July 2019: Jordanian Prime Minister said that the Egyptian-Jordanian Higher Committee meetings aim to remove obstacles that can obstruct the enhancement of bilateral relations between Egypt and Jordan and explore cooperation horizons at the Middle East level, a statement by the Egyptian Cabinet read.

During a press conference in Cairo with Egypt's Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouli on Wednesday, Jordan's Prime Minister Omar al-Razzaz noted that the challenges facing the countries of the region require cooperation in order to help the brotherly countries deal with these challenges and to lay the foundations for integration in the region to achieve a state of peace and prosperity.

Razzaz referred to the directives of the political leadership of the two countries concerning the importance of upgrading the levels of cooperation and coordination between the two brotherly countries and moving to a more profound and integrated stage.

The meeting was clear, Razzaz said, adding that the big challenges as well as the opportunities which face the two countries have been underlined. "We work on turning these challenges into opportunities in order for us to achieve a better future for the peoples of the two brotherly countries," he stated.

Razzaz said that the meeting addressed the situation of Egyptian labor in Jordan. The meetings also agreed on the importance of treating Egyptian students in Jordanian schools with the same treatment as Jordanian students, and vice versa. The meetings also discussed the scientific curricula that can be exchanged in the fields of education, to upgrade the educations services introduced by each of the two countries.

The obstacles facing the investors in both countries in various sectors have been identified, Razzaz said.

The two sides reviewed a proposal for setting up a logistics area in Jordan to serve the neighboring regions, Razzaz said, adding that a specific time schedule has been directed to be followed up by the prime ministers of the two countries on a regular basis in order to strengthen cooperation frameworks between Egypt and Jordan.

This comes after the Egyptian-Jordanian Higher Committee meetings were concluded, during which cooperation protocols in various fields have been signed by officials of the two countries. The meetings were co-chaired by Madbouli and Razzaz.

Egypt's Madbouli said that a number of preliminary meetings of the joint committee have been held over the past few days, during which the two sides offered solutions to most of the outstanding issues between the two countries.

Madbouli said that Wednesday's meeting touched on a number of files, especially the political file and the current situation in the region, and highlighted the need for continued cooperation and integration between the two brotherly countries in light of the challenges facing the Middle East.

The meeting of the joint committee discussed means of supporting the fields of cooperation in the economic sector, Madbouli said, explaining that the volume of trade exchange between the two countries is expected to significantly grow in the coming period.

In this regard, Madbouli stressed the importance of working together to remove any obstacles that can face Egyptian and Jordanian investors. He also urged developing an executive plan to solve these problems in an urgent and immediate manner.

Concerning the Jordanian side's complaint about a difficulty facing the registration of Jordanian companies in Egypt, Madbouli said that the maximum period of registration will be two weeks in an effort to open and advance cooperation between the two countries.

Madbouli also affirmed the importance of integration and coordination to enter new markets both in the Arab region and Africa.

"We look forward to deepening the cooperation between the two countries in the field of electricity linkage and cooperation in the field of gas and oil fields, so as to benefit the two brotherly countries, as well as other countries in the region through using the linkage network," Madbouli stated.