Ammon News - Since its inception in 2003, the Social Security Investment Fund (SSIF), the investment arm of the Social Security Corporation (SSC), has yielded significant returns while preserving the real value of assets and ensuring the necessary liquidity to fulfill future obligations of the SSC, as stated by its president, Ezzedine Kanakrieh.
Kanakrieh affirmed that the SSIF stands as the largest in Jordan, with assets totaling about JD 14.9 billion by the end of 2023, representing approximately 40 percent of the Gross Domestic Product at current prices.
He noted that the Fund has received considerable royal attention over the past 25 years, underscoring the importance of bolstering the role of the SSC and its investment fund in safeguarding social protection for citizens.
In remarks to the Jordan News Agency (Petra), marking the silver jubilee of His Majesty King Abdullah II's accession to the throne, Kanakrieh outlined that the fund's assets are diversified among several investment portfolios, including bonds, stocks, money market instruments, real estate, loans, and tourism investments.
Touching upon the financial performance achievements, Kanakrieh highlighted the growth in asset volume since the Fund's establishment in 2003, rising from JD 1.6 billion to approximately JD 14.9 billion by the end of 2023, based on preliminary data. This growth reflects returns on investment across various instruments, including financial tools like money market instruments, bonds, loans, stock investments, real estate, and tourism.
Based on preliminary figures, the fund garnered income across various investment instruments totaling JD 802.3 million by the end of 2023, compared to JD 684.2 million in 2022, marking an increase of JD 118.1 million, with a growth rate of approximately 17.3 percent.
Regarding investments in the stock portfolio, Kanakrieh noted a figure of about JD 2.3 million in 2023. He emphasized the fund's status as a long-term strategic investor in companies listed on the Amman Stock Exchange, reflected in the portfolio's distribution and the quality of its investments, known for achieving desirable returns with acceptable risks.
The fund's portfolio includes shares of over 50 public joint-stock companies, primarily in the banking, industrial, and service sectors, characterized by robust financial positions, good annual growth rates, and regular cash distributions to shareholders.
The value of the fund's portfolio of shares in public joint-stock companies reached approximately JD 2.1 billion by the end of 2023, representing about 12.4 percent of the total market value of the Amman Stock Exchange.
Kanakrieh detailed that investments in the banking sector are among the Fund's prominent ventures in the Amman Stock Exchange. This sector plays a crucial role in the Jordanian economy, providing financing for major projects, small businesses, and promising sectors such as information technology, tourism, and renewable energy. Moreover, it serves as a significant employer of highly skilled local talent.
The fund's investments extend to 13 commercial and Islamic banks in Jordan, with varying ownership percentages, along with strategic stakes in key manufacturing companies like the Jordan Phosphate Mines Company, the Arab Potash Company, and the Jordan Cement Factories Company - Lafarge.
The Fund also invests in several public shareholding companies in the services sector, notably the Jordan Telecommunications Company and the Jordan Duty Free Company, alongside various insurance and financial services firms. It also possesses a collection of five- and four-star hotels managed by the International InterContinental Group (IHG), under the supervision of the National Tourism Development Company, wholly owned by the SSC, established in 1999.
Additionally, the Fund owns two hotels in Amman and Madaba, as well as multiple tourist resorts in key destinations across the Kingdom, managed by local Jordanian investors.
Kanakrieh highlighted the Fund's ownership of shares in major tourism projects, investing in leading local companies such as Eagle Hills Company (Saraya Aqaba project), Zara Investment Company (InterContinental/Amman, M?venpick Hotels/Dead Sea, Petra, and Aqaba), the International Company for Hotels and Commercial Markets (Sheraton Amman Hotel), the Tourism Business Company (Marriott Hotel/Dead Sea), the Jordan Tourism Projects Development Company (Tala Bay Project/Aqaba), and the Daman Investment Company (Aqaba Gate and Movenpick Hotel/Amman).
In the energy sector, the Fund diversifies its investments across oil refineries, electricity generation and distribution, and renewable energy projects. It holds shares in several entities, including the Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company, the Kingdom for Energy Investments Company, the Central Electricity Generation Company, and the Jordan Electric Power Company, along with indirect investments through the Kingdom for Energy Investments Company in the Electricity Distribution Company, the Irbid Governorate Electricity Company, and the Zarqa Electric Power Generation Company (Al-Hussein Thermal Station).
The Fund has established and operates three solar energy generation stations in the regions of Al-Rama, Ghor Kabd, and Zarqa, supplying power to its premises and the branches of the SSC across the Kingdom, as well as SSC-owned hotels. Plans are underway to issue a tender for establishing a fourth solar energy station in the Shoubak area, supplying electricity to the Crowne Plaza Al-Batar Hotel.
With lands and commercial complexes across various governorates valued at approximately JD 845 million, the Fund develops and leases properties through long-term contracts, including Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) arrangements.
To further its investments in the green economy and align with the royal vision for enhanced food security, the Fund established the "SSC Company for Investment and Agricultural Industries" in 2020, commencing operations by the end of 2021.
Last year, the company initiated the second phase of an agricultural project in the Al-Mudawara region in southern Jordan, cultivating wheat, table potatoes, industrial potatoes, corn silage, and animal feed.
Managed by local Jordanian talent, the project has created over 110 job opportunities for engineers and agricultural workers, with 90 percent allocated to residents of the Al-Mudawara region and southern governorates, along with 80 seasonal job opportunities, with 50 percent for local women.
According to Kanakrieh, the Fund established the SSC Company for Development of Developmental Areas in 2009 as a private joint stock company wholly owned by the General Organization for Social Security, to be the investment arm of the Investment Fund for infrastructure, services, and marketing for the King Hussein bin Talal Development Area/Mafraq, and the Irbid Development Area, declared as areas of economic development through royal initiatives. This company owns 80% of the capital of the Mafraq Development Company, developing the King Hussein bin Talal Development Area, covering 21,000 dunums. Its investments focus on logistics services and renewable energy in various industrial sectors.
Jordanian, Arab, and foreign investments in the region total about JD 500 million, with 58 operating factories and under-construction units in various industrial sectors. Existing factories provide approximately 1,300 permanent jobs, and those under design and construction will offer about 1,780 permanent positions.
The region attracted 4 solar energy projects totaling 175 megawatts, with an investment of JD 165 million, generating about 200 job opportunities during implementation.
The SSC Company for Development of Developmental Areas wholly owns the Northern Development Company in Irbid, the main developer of the Irbid Development Area covering 1.8 km². Investments focus on information technology, communications, and support services, attracting 8 investments totaling JD 40 million, providing 2,300 job opportunities.
In 2016, the Fund established the SSC Financial Leasing Company for financing major infrastructure projects in various governorates in the health, transportation, and services sectors, contributing to creating training and employment opportunities.
The company finances projects like the Tafila Governmental Hospital, the Amman Customs Building Project - Al Madouna, the Ma'an Military Hospital, and the Bus Rapid Transit project linking Amman and Zarqa.
The pharmaceutical industry is vital to the Jordanian economy, enhancing research and development. The SSIF holds strategic shares in leading pharmaceutical companies such as Al-Hikma and Dar Al-Dawaa, contributing to about 80 public and private joint-stock companies. The Fund is represented on their boards by 119 delegates, with 13% being women.
The Fund, through its representatives on company boards, supports enhancing their developmental role by financing pioneering projects and small businesses, and backing social responsibility and sustainable development initiatives.
It ensures its representatives adhere to corporate governance standards and effective oversight controls, recognizing their importance in improving financial performance and shareholder interests, including Social Security. Periodic specialized forums enhance their skills, keeping them updated on legislation, global economic developments, and best practices in institutional governance.
Since 2018, the Fund has developed a social responsibility document outlining strategies and practices for economic, social, and environmental development.
To promote responsible investment and contribute to national modernization, the Fund's strategic plan (2022-2024) includes Sustainable Development Goals like economic growth, poverty eradication, gender equality, and climate action.
Since 2017, the Fund voluntarily issues sustainability reports highlighting achievements in financial, institutional, environmental, and societal sustainability. It emphasizes transparent impact assessment on financial sustainability, social security, the national economy, the environment, and society.
In 2018, the Fund issued a Women’s Empowerment Document to enhance female employees' skills and opportunities for career advancement on par with male colleagues.
In 2022, it participated in women’s economic empowerment initiatives, proposing strategies for increasing female economic participation, transitioning women from the informal to the formal economy, and facilitating women's leadership in the private sector.
The Fund's investments span vital sectors such as banking, mining, tourism, communications, energy (traditional and renewable), pharmaceuticals, agriculture, development areas, and real estate. These investments boost the Fund's portfolio value, ensure financial sustainability for Social Security, stimulate economic activity, create quality jobs, and contribute to comprehensive sustainable development. Petra
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