Raad Mahmoud Al-Tal

Over the past decades, Jordan has witnessed notable developmental banking experiences, such as the Industrial Development Bank and the Export and Finance Bank. These institutions played a key role in financing productive projects, supporting emerging industries, and promoting foreign trade. Their transformation into commercial and Islamic banks, however, left a significant gap in Jordan’s developmental finance system, especially at a time when specialized financial instruments are needed to implement the Economic Modernization Vision.

The Industrial Development Bank provided medium- and long-term financing for industrial projects when commercial banks avoided such risks. It acted as the financial arm of industrial development, linking government policy with private-sector needs. The Export and Finance Bank aimed to support Jordanian exporters with financing and guarantees to reduce market risks and boost competitiveness. With their transformation into commercial entities, Jordan lost institutions that effectively bridged finance and production.

Today, amid slower industrial investment and relatively weak exports, the creation of a national development bank is essential. Such a bank would manage investments, finance development projects, and serve as a leverage for domestic and international capital. Beyond lending, it would act as the financial manager of the national development plan, coordinating government, private sector, and investor efforts to direct capital toward projects with strong economic and social impact.

The bank could mobilize local and foreign resources, attract international partnerships, and serve as a formal negotiation channel with creditors and development institutions, enhancing the independence of national financial decisions. Most importantly, it would focus on stimulating domestic production and supporting exports, by financing industrial projects, modernizing production lines, providing guarantees to exporters, and supporting small and medium enterprises in supply chains—raising efficiency and reducing import dependence.

Experiences from South Korea, Brazil, and Turkey show that development banks play a pivotal role in building industrial capacity and boosting exports. A national investment bank in Jordan could fill financing gaps in productive sectors, encourage innovation, and support industrial expansion.

Establishing this bank is an economic necessity. Without a central institution managing the development agenda, financing is scattered across ministries and funds, weakening coordination and planning. A single, professionally managed national bank, operating under governance and transparency standards, would align economic policy with execution.

Development is achieved not through plans alone but through institutions capable of managing capital and production together. A national development bank could unify efforts, transform economic visions into real projects, create jobs, enhance exports, and build a sustainable industrial base, supporting Jordan’s long-term economic independence.