Access to Regional and International Markets
- Jordan is strategically situated at the convergence of the three continents of Europe, Asia, and Africa and is therefore an ideal gateway for the Middle East-North Africa region and beyond.
- Jordan boasts high political and economic stability. The current system of Government is parliamentary with a hereditary monarchy. Since 1989, Jordan has maintained regular parliamentary elections for a house of assembly and has made significant efforts to promote political liberalization.
Favorable Business Environment
- Jordan is a free market oriented economy, with a private sector led approach. A testament to Jordan's commitment to economic liberalization and to creating the conditions for private capital to flourish is the unprecedented pace at which the privatization program has advanced, ranked by the World Bank as one of the most successful programs in the Middle East and North Africa region.
- Jordan ranks in the top 6 of the 17 countries examined with regard to doing business in the Middle East; it also ranks 2nd in terms of employing workers, hiring and firing and flexibility in hours (Doing Business Report 2009, World Bank).
- Jordan's unique trade and investment framework agreements offer investors access to a market of over one billion consumers.
- Jordan has one of the most impartial and efficient legal systems in the region, committed to the protection of investors' rights irrespective of national origin.
Highly Qualified Labor Force
- Jordan's workforce is regarded one of the most qualified, competitive and productive in the region. Moreover, Jordan's labor rates are considerably lower than those in other countries in the Middle East.
- Jordan's literacy rate of 91% is among the highest in the Middle East.
- Jordan boasts the highest female education rates in the region, the largest numbers of engineers relative to the population in the world, and is home to the largest number of doctors and nurses relative to the population than any other country in the region.
- Named as the MENA region's top performer in the field of education reform, the Jordanian Government is among the region's highest spenders on education where more than 20% of the country's GDP is invested in education.
- Jordanian children start learning English and computer skills in elementary school.
- Over 200,000 students attend Jordan's 24 universities and another 20,000 are earning degrees abroad; and 10,000 skilled technicians graduate annually from Jordan's 60 community colleges and 35 vocational centers.
Modern Infrastructure
- Jordan's three airports provide ready access to many international destinations. 72 airlines provide service to Jordan's main airports including major airlines such as Air France, British Airways, Emirates Airlines and Lufthansa. Jordan's national air carrier, Royal Jordanian, has a modern fleet that carries well over two million passengers annually aboard scheduled flights to 55 destinations on four continents.
- The Queen Alia Airport is currently undergoing expansion to serve 9 million passengers; the airport directly serves 55 destinations and 700 destinations are served by alliance airlines. Furthermore, a multi-million dollar investment toward upgrading the cargo terminal at Queen Alia Airport is underway.
- The deep-water harbor of Aqaba port offers facilities for general cargo, containerized cargo and specialized cargo. The world class Aqaba Container Terminal is run by APM Terminals Jordan.
- A railway master plan is underway to develop an extensive rail network.
Globally Connected
- Jordan has one of the most open telecommunications markets in the Middle East which is overseen by an independent regulator.
- Jordan's telecommunications infrastructure is modern, with a very competitive mobile and internet landscape. According to Global Information Technology Report 2007-2008, Jordan ranks high in environment, readiness and usage of technology, ranking 47 out of 127. In fact, Jordan's deregulated telecommunication market since 2005 has led to mobile penetration rate of 78%.
- Jordan has experienced massive growth of broadband and wireless networks, with 100% access to Internet.
Strong Banking and Financial Services
- Banks in Jordan operate within a comprehensive legal framework and apply the Central Bank of Jordan Law, the Banking Law, and Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Financing of Terrorism Law, and are in complete compliance with international standards (Basel Core Principles for Effective Banking Supervision).
- Jordan boasts a modern well established stock market infrastructure (including no taxes on capital gains, no taxes on cash dividends, free repatriation of investment and income, and no ceiling on foreign equity ownership and privatization). Shares owned by non-Jordanians represent 46.4% of ASE capitalization, 35.4% of which are owned by Arab investors and 11.0% by non-Arabs.
- Currently there are 24 banks operating in Jordan, 15 of which are Jordanian banks, 2 are Islamic banks, 9 are non-Jordanian banks and 4 are investment banks.
Standard of Living
- Jordan enjoys a Mediterranean climate and four seasons of temperate weather; in fact, Amman is considered to be the coldest Arab capital due to its location on a mountainous range that is 1,029 meters above sea level.
- Jordan is a unique destination and a hospitable nation, home to some of the most renowned cultural and archeological sites, from the bustling streets of Amman to the majestic serenity of Wadi Rum and Petra, from the countless ruins that stand testimony, to the country's rich history and Baptism site, to the healing powers of the lowest point on earth; the Dead Sea.
- Jordan also houses numerous cultural centers, a variety of restaurants, sporting facilities, attractive shopping malls, and a number of traditional souqs.
- Jordan hosts a large expatriate community and offers many modern features that make it a desirable place to live in such as great housing at competitive rates, top medical facilities with Western trained physicians, a wide range of international schools, modern shopping malls with chain restaurants, clothing and furniture international brands, multiplex cinemas showing the latest movies, and broadband connectivity in the major cities.
- As per the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report 2009-2010, Jordan ranks as a very safe country as seen by both global and regional standards, with reliable police services and low crime rates.