Will new agreement lead to increase in Palestinian exports?
A new Palestinian-Jordanian agreement will allow the export of goods in small containers to Jordan for the first time ever, which Palestinians hope will increase their global exports.
RAMALLAH, West Bank — The Palestinian Ministry of Economy announced May 6 that it reached an agreement with the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan on the export of Palestinian products to Jordan in small 20-foot containers via the King Hussein (Allenby) Bridge.
Previously, goods would be loaded onto trucks and taken to the Israeli side of the border. There, trucks would be unloaded and thoroughly inspected, before the merchandise would be loaded onto other trucks and taken to Jordan.
The agreement aims to help the Palestinians reduce the financial cost of exports while maintaining the quality of the goods, especially for perishable, agricultural and fragile products. The agreement will increase the volume of trade exchange with Jordan and other countries across the world.
The agreement, which was sponsored by international parties such as the Quartet, came as part of the implementation of the Palestinian five-year National Export Strategy, developed under the supervision of the International Trade Center (ITC) and funded by the European Union. The strategy was launched by the government on June 1, 2015, in the presence of ITC Executive Director Arancha Gonzalez and EU representative John Gatt-Rutter, and is expected to lead to an overall growth in exports over the next five years by 67%, with an annual growth rate of 13%.
