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Ammon News -

 The Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MOPIC) Sunday said it had secured US$301 million in foreign financial assistance for Jordan during the January-June 2021 period.

The Ministry told "Petra" that the amount includes US$265 million in the form of grants and US$36 million in the form of concessional grants, highlighting the bulk of the money would be allocated to developing the water sector and boosting the Kingdom's economic growth.

It would also support the public budget and cushion the blow of the COVID-19 pandemic's fallout, especially in terms of enhancing the health and social protection sector and breathe life into the labour market by supporting small- and medium-sized enterprises.

It also focused on supporting the justice and governance sector. It provides additional funds to support a response plan to the Syrian crisis.

Some 70 percent of the international aid is funneled through the public budget, which bears witness to the fact the donor community trusts the prudence of Jordan's public institutions and believes in their transparency.

The ministry said it expects foreign aid this year would maintain its level of last year at $4 billion, including: $2 billion in regular and additional grants to support the water, health, and social protection sectors and to enhance economic growth.

The expected aid for the current year also includes US$2 billion as concessional grants to support the public budget and the health sector. It would also be used to allow the government to purchase more COVID-19 vaccines and medical equipment.

It would also fund social protection programmes and implement "top priority" water projects, as well as small- and medium-sized projects.

The yet to be signed loans are characterised by being highly concessional and aimed to support the public budget and fund "prioritised" development projects.

MOPIC would coordinate with the Ministry of Finance and competent ministries to secure all approvals.

The interest rate on the aforementioned concessional grants range between .5-4 percent, with a repayment period that could run through 35 years with a grace period of at least 3-10 years.

MOPIC said it is working with Jordan's donor partners and other funding international agencies to sustain support for the Kingdom.

The Ministry is negotiating additional support in the upcoming period to enable Jordan cope with the many challenges it faces, especially in areas of economic growth.

The continued support for Jordan shows the level of the international community's respect for the Kingdom and its regional and international role.

It proves the international community's recognition of the reforms taking place in the Kingdom and its trust in Jordan's ability to manage the international funds.