Ammon News - The volume of registered investments in the free and development estates stood at JD1.434 billion, said Khalaf Hmeisat, Chairman of the Jordan Free and Development Zones Group (JFDZ).

In an interview with the Jordan News Agency (Petra), Hmeisat stated that the investments cover commercial, industrial, tourism and service activities.

He pointed out that the free zone at Queen Alia International Airport got the lion's share of the growth rate in the number of registered leased companies, reaching 12.7 percent, while the number of companies operating in public and private free zones at the end of 2020 amounted to 1,953 companies, an increase of 0.2 percent.

Detailing the percentage of investments according to area in 2020, Hmeisat said that the overall investments in the public free zones were at 72 percent, with the free zone in Zarqa ranking first at 95 percent, followed by the free zone in Sahab with 87 percent, the free zone in Muwaqar with 85 percent, and the free zone in Karak with 54 percent. Meanwhile, the free zones in the Queen Alia International Airport and Al-Karama recorded the lowest percentages with 12 percent and 3 percent respectively.

On the JFDZ's measures during the COVID-19 pandemic, the chairman underlined that the group took a number of precautionary measures to maintain operations and provide services to investors, stressing that the number of laborers working in various investment projects for free zones and development areas were at 3,000, of which 92 percent were Jordanian.

He explained that the group adapted to exceptional circumstances imposed by the pandemic by adopting a plan of action that includes administrative, organizational and technical measures aimed at preserving the health and safety of workers, investors and customers alike, which limits the financial effects of the pandemic on them.

The measures, he added, included implementing the approved health protocol, such as wearing face masks, using sterilizers, social distancing, and sterilizing buildings and offices.

The JFDZ offered investors in the free and development zones the option to pay in installments to match their financial ability, while companies investing in the Dead Sea Development Zone were exempted from delay penalties over land fees for companies' project in the area.