The
services sector accounts for around 67% of Jordan's economy. Services
sectors include:
Business Services:
Professional Services (inclusive management and marketing consulting,
legal services, accounting and auditing, architectural and engineering
services, medical and dental services, veterinary services), Computer
and related services, Research and Development Services, Rental and
Leasing Services without operators, technical testing, maintenance and
repair services, packaging services, printing and publishing services).
Communication
Services:
Postal, Courier, Telecommunications Audio visual)
Construction and
related engineering services.
Distribution:
Commission agents, wholesale, retail and franchising.
Education Services
Environmental
Services
Financial Services
Health Related and
Social Services
Tourism and Travel
Related Services
Recreational,
Cultural and Sporting Services (other than audiovisual services)
Transport Services:
Maritime, Air, Road and auxiliary support services.
The Jordan Services Modernisation Programme (JSMP)
The Jordan
Services Modernisation Programme (JSMP) is an EU
funded programmefocusing on
the development and modernization of the Services sector. Its duration is 3
years (2009-2011) with a total budget of €16 million. Beneficiaries of the
programme are private service sector enterprises - Small and Medium size
Enterprises (SMEs) - relevant business associations and public sector
bodies.
The main
objective of JSMP is to assist Jordan to fully benefit from the
opportunities of trade liberalisation of services in the context of the
General Agreement on Trade and Services (GATS) and the economic integration
objectives of the Istanbul Protocol signed in July 2004.
To facilitate
the implementation of JSMP, JEDCO is now creating a Services Sector Support
Directorate (SD). The SD will include four departments: the Technical
Support Department (TSD), the Services Export Promotion Department (SEPD),
the Financial Support Scheme Department (FSSD) and the Policy Support
Department (PSD). A specialized customer focused information center shall
also be established to serve the needs of the business community.
The Technical
Support Department (TSD)
A. The
Technical Support Department (TSD)
aims at helping qualified services sector companies to upgrade their
business and to prepare them to export. After an initial diagnosis phase and
preparation of a comprehensive upgrading plan, client companies will benefit
from access to grants to support their business development activities. The
TSD will closely work with other Departments of the SD, the Service Exports
Promotion Department (SEPD) for export issues, the Financial Support Scheme
Department (FSSD) for financial support matters as well as the Policy
Support Department (PSD) for policy recommendations, advocacy and
institutional solutions.
The Services
Export Promotion Department (SEPD)
B. The
Services Export Promotion Department (SEPD)
aims at promoting Jordanian service exports through the participation in
trade fairs, promotional and market access inward and outward missions, and
the creation of viable export platforms for service producers.
The SEPD will
help build national capacities of qualified SMEs and Business Associations
to develop services export alliances through exporter-linkage events;
establish and maintain relationships with trade organizations in targeted
export markets; organize match-making events between Jordanian services
providers and importers mainly from the EU and the Mediterranean region;
organize conferences and trade fairs in Jordan and in targeted markets
abroad for businesses to promote Jordanian services.
The Financial Support
Scheme Department (FSSD)
C. The Financial Support Scheme Department (FSSD)
is a newly created function under the Cross-Cutting Support Directorate in
charge of facilitating access to finance for SMEs. Its four areas of
intervention are:
Assistance to services
companies for raising funds; this will be achieved by providing
companies with technical support and access to a network of partner
financial institutions;
Development of
tailored credit guarantees schemes, facilitating access to long and
short term credit;
Development of new
financial instruments (e.g. investment funds); and the
Improvement of the
existing enabling environment.
In synergy with the Technical Support and Service Export
Promotion Departments, it intervenes directly at the level of companies,
notably by undertaking comprehensive financial evaluation of companies
applying for assistance and coaching them on how to achieve access to
finance to implement their growth plans.
The Policy
Support Department (PSD)
D. The Policy Support Department (PSD)
is another newly created function under the Cross Cutting Support
Directorate, JE and is responsible for assessing services sector policies
for policy decision making.
·The
PSD has mainly two areas of intervention:
·Information
production: this will be mainly achieved by carrying out policy oriented
sectoral studies.
·Economic data
collection and analysis: this will be achieved by setting up a monitoring
mechanism to monitor market and enterprise developments and by collecting
and analysing information on
barriers faced by Jordanian exporters to access foreign
markets.
The Department will work with all issues related to the
services sector within JEDCO, and closely collaborate with the Services
Policy Unit, within the Foreign Trade Policy and Relations Department at the
Ministry of Industry and Trade.
