Jordan: New foundations for granting citizenship to investors 'qualitative' step towards modernisation — economists
In interviews with the Jordan News Agency, Petra, the economists stressed the need to address some challenges to ensure effective implementation and achieve the desired development returns.
The Council of Ministers on Thursday approved new foundations for granting citizenship and residency to investors, in a step aimed at enhancing the business environment and attracting long-term quality investments.
Economists pointed out that the "existence" of an integrated programme, including citizenship, and temporary and permanent residency, according to the size and type of investment, will give Jordan a "competitive" advantage in the region, especially in light of the similar facilities provided by competing countries.
Quality investments
President of the Jordanian Expatriate Businessmen and Women Association (Tawasul) Fadi Majali said that this decision is a 'strategic' step in line with global trends aimed at attracting high-quality investments and encouraging sustainable investment.
Majali praised the government's focus on linking citizenship grants to "tangible" production and "direct" employment of Jordanian citizens, which enhances the direct economic impact of any new investment or expansion.
He pointed out that the "optimal" impact of this decision requires a structured framework designed to attract "long-term" foreign investments.
Majali added that the development of "clear criteria" for permanent residency programmes is essential, which gives legal and moral "stability" to the investors and their families, and is a "flexible" alternative for those who do not wish to obtain citizenship directly or do not meet its requirements.
Representative of Leather and Knitting Industries Sector at the Jordan Chamber of Industry (JCI) Ihab Qadri noted that this trend comes in line with national aspirations towards economic modernistion, and is a message of confidence that the Kingdom is open to real investment based on partnership, employment and joint growth.
Sustainability
Director General of the Jordanian Businessmen Association Tariq Hijazi said that the new foundations and their aspects are generally positive.
He considered that the most important characteristic of the foundations is the inclusion of new and previous investors for the issuance of the foundations, which encouraged to ensure the "continuation" of existing projects and limit their liquidation in the event of new investments.
In addition to linking the granting of citizenship to a period that achieves the guarantee of the continuation of investment for a period of three years is logical, as this period gives an indication of the success and continuity of the project or not.
Hijazi stressed the necessity of designating an official reference authority responsible for monitoring and auditing investors' compliance with the conditions.
This can be achieved by establishing a unit within the Ministry of Investment that will oversee these nationality-linked investments for three years through regulatory systems, a practice already implemented in several countries worldwide.
Partnership of private and public sectors
For his part, investment expert Mohammed Qaryouti stressed that the new foundations illustrate the "actual" translation of the partnership between the public and private sectors.
He added that the financial market of any country is the "direct mirror" of regulated economic activities because there are several regulations governing it based on globally accepted principles, and the investor does not need much to assess the feasibility of this activity.
They can also monitor and track their investment in traded stocks moment by moment from anywhere in the world, he said.
Stock market
The privileges offered to investors who wish to obtain Jordanian citizenship through purchasing stocks were introduced, along with supporting privileges in terms of concentration ratio, trading possibility, and the prohibition of profit withdrawal during the first three years.
Qaryouti said: "Important productive economic sectors are added to it as stipulated by these instructions because they are developmental projects whose investment value increases over time.'
He added that these sectors have a long economic cycle, and each milestone they surpass in their operations increases their investment value, such as warehouses for medicines and pharmaceutical materials, medical and surgical devices and equipment, and their supplies, as well as food logistics services, storage, and large warehouses.
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