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Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - The Chinese Ambassador to Jordan Pan Weifang said that the Ninth Ministerial Meeting of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum will be held in Jordan next year, which will be another great event in the history of China-Jordan and China-Arab relations.

In remarks at a reception in Amman on Wednesday to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding the People's Republic of China, the envoy said that China and Jordan have continuously deepened cooperation under the framework of the China-Arab States Cooperation Forum and the Belt and Road Initiative with achievements in various fields, noting that the two countries' practical cooperation has yielded gratifying results as China is Jordan's third largest trading partner and second largest source of imports, with a bilateral trade totaled of US$3.184 billion in 2018.

The envoy noted that the Attarat Oil Shale Power Plant, with a total investment of US$2.1 billion, financed and constructed by China, is under construction, and is expected to be completed and put into operation next year to meet 10-15% of Jordan's electricity demand and save Jordan a lot of energy costs.

He added that a MoU was signed during the World Economic Forum's Middle East and Africa Summit in April this year between ICT Ministry of Jordan and Huawei to establish 3 capacity-building centers to provide ICT training for 3000 Jordanian officials and students in cooperation with 3 public universities.

He also pointed out that his country is negotiating with Jordan on the implementation of Salt road reconstruction, water conservancy equipment, food aid, CCTV-3 project and other assistance projects, noting that the first batch of eight advanced customs inspection equipment aided by the Chinese government is expected to arrive at Aqaba port in early October.

"China has grown into the world’s second largest economy, the largest industrial producer, the largest trader of goods, and the holder of the largest foreign exchange reserves in a shocking speed. With market access significantly broadened and the investment environment continuously improved, China has contributed over 30 percent of global growth in recent years, making it the No.1 engine of world economic growth," he said, noting that "China's per capita national income increased from about US$70 to US$9470, an increase of 135 times. Over the past 40 years of reform and opening up, more than 700 million poor people in China have emerged from poverty, forming the world's largest middle-income group of more than 400 million people, and have built a basic pension insurance and medical insurance system covering more than 900 million people,".

Talking about the Belt and Road Initiative, the envoy said it has opened up new space for world economic growth, set up a new platform for international trade and investment, expanded new practices for improving global governance, made new contributions to the well-being of people in all countries, and provided a new path for the cause of peace and development of mankind.