Economists hail gov’t decision to employ foreign workers in agriculture sector

AMMAN — Economists on Saturday welcomed the recent decisions by the Labour Ministry to boost the agriculture sector and eliminate all the obstacles facing it due to the COVID-19 crisis.

On Saturday, Labour Minister and Minister of State for Investment Affairs Maen Qatamin met with union leaders and figures from the private and public agriculture sector to discuss the challenges facing their growth and production process.

One of the major decisions adopted by the government during the meeting was allowing the employment of foreign workers in the agriculture work for the next six months.

“The government had stopped accepting foreign labourers in this field for the past three years and this has created a burden on the agriculture sector since the available foreign workers in Jordan are not enough to cover this sector,” economist Musa Saket said.

“This good decision” will secure more foreign labourers and result in lowering their fees that were very expensive due to the lack of workers in this field, Saket told The Jordan Times.

Saket also stated that another decision adopted by the government on Sunday was allowing 100 per cent of foreign workers to work in the land plot.

In the past, Saket added, the accepted percentage was only 15 per cent of foreign labourers for each land plot.  

Phenix Centre for Economic Studies Ahmad Awad echoed Saket’s remarks saying the decisions taken on Sunday were important and will boost the sector.

“We do not have a lot of alternatives in the past because we do not have enough skilled Jordanian labourers,” Awad told The Jordan Times.

In addition, Awad maintained that the conditions to enrol in this sector for Jordanians are very complicated, which “discourage many from working in this field”.

But Awad was quick to add that the government still needs to work on issuing instructions that would regulate the work of this sector.

In July, union leaders in the agriculture sector called on the government to facilitate the return of foreign agriculture workers to the Kingdom to protect the industry in the coming years.

They warned that the agriculture sector has been suffering from a crisis due to the shortage of foreign labourers.

On May 31, His Majesty King Abdullah called for stepping up efforts to develop local product specifications and quality, as well as expand the pharmaceutical, medical supplies and food processing industries to cover domestic needs and increase exports.

At a meeting with the steering committee to support the national pharmaceutical, medical supplies and food processing industries at Al Husseiniya Palace, attended by HRH Crown Prince Hussein, King Abdullah urged identifying an entity to implement the expansion of these industries within a clear timeframe, according to a Royal Court statement.

His Majesty noted the importance of identifying agricultural land in Jordan and the types of crops best suited for cultivation.

The steering committee was formed by Royal directives in mid-April to expand local production of food, medicine and medical supplies.

On May 10 during a visit to a farm project, King Abdullah stressed the importance of helping Jordanian farmers shift from traditional farming to value-added agricultural products and target export markets.

King Abdullah, accompanied by the Crown Prince, commended entrepreneurial agricultural projects and their capacity to generate jobs, noting the importance of maintaining public safety procedures.