Former Deputy Prime Minister Rajai Muasher stressed that Jordan seeks a political solution to the Palestinian Cause, noting that its position was clear in rejecting resettlement, displacement, and abandoning Al-Aqsa, and that it is the only country that deals with the Palestinian Cause as a “national interest.”
During the panel discussion held by the Arab Renaissance for Democracy and Development (ARDD), within the framework of the Palestinian Cause program, under the title: “The Shocks of the Aggression on Gaza: Economic Effects on Jordan and the Region”, on Wednesday, December 20, 2023, as part of the second series of seminars to follow up on, record, and document the developments of the war in Palestine, in cooperation with the Human and Economic Development Forum (HEDF) at ARDD, Muasher stressed that it is not possible to dismiss the Palestinian Cause when talking about coexistence or peace in the region.
Muasher pointed out that Jordan had a clear position on the displacement of Palestinians, which he considered a red line, calling for more Jordanian and Arab communication with the Western world, which is starting to understand the reality of the Arab-Israeli conflict, noting that our Arab media needs to up its game and keep pace with the events in an objective manner.
Regarding the impact of the war on the Jordanian economy, Muasher explained that despite the crises experienced by Jordan’s GDP, it still gives positive indicators compared to other countries, stressing the need to improve resources through adequate and effective public spending to provide basic goods and public services.
Moreover, Muasher expressed his belief that Jordan will overcome the crisis because it has already gone through similar crises, such as the Arab Spring and the Covid-19 pandemic, during which it survived economic downturn and recession. However, he expected economic pressure on the tourism, export, investment, and internal consumption sectors. While the repercussions on these sectors may last for a long time, he said that tourism could recover quickly once the war ends.
Muasher explained that Jordan’s political position has affected the amount of foreign aid it receives, holding “the international community responsible for capturing the right messages from the ongoing war, and learning the lesson that their neglect of the region for decades and leaving the Arab-Israeli conflict unresolved led to wars, enormous human cost, human suffering and destruction, and sowing the seeds of despair and loss of hope.”
On the impact of the war on the region, Muasher said that Egypt will face great economic difficulties, especially with regard to foreign debt, while the economic situation in Lebanon will continue to deteriorate. Meanwhile, Syria, which collides with the Caesar Act, is still under sanctions and continues to face a worsening economic crisis.
Regarding his position on the boycott, Muasher saw that the boycott in the traditional sense is a means to an end, which can be achieved with more awareness and according to an informed political study and a clear strategy, stressing that the individual boycott is “good” in some cases and situations, but in the case of war it needs leaders, thought, practices, and political sophistication in order to achieve its goals.
Now, in light of these repercussions and the effects of all this on the Jordanian economy and on the region in general, according to Muasher and the participants in the meeting, a number of measures should be taken to deal with cases of financial instability, such as developing urgent contingency plans to prevent the disruption of economic modernization paths, stimulating investments in infrastructure, basic industries, and other large projects to promote economic growth and create jobs, as well as the importance of improving economic policies: Such as monetary, financial, and trade policies, to promote economic growth and improve the financial and economic conditions for individuals and companies, in addition to providing financial support for individuals and companies affected by the economic turmoil, such as loans, grants, and subsidies, as well as improving the productive capacities of companies and small and medium enterprises, such as providing training, education, technology, and equipment to promote economic growth and create more jobs, as well as promoting international trade and cooperation to boost economic growth, in order to stimulate and promote national production and enhance the share of local products in the local market.
