Agricultural sector figures highlight growing self-dependence

Amman: The Department of Statistics revealed encouraging statistics indicating a rise in Jordan's reliance on its agricultural outputs despite daunting climate hurdles and limited irrigation resources, said Muhammad Hiyari, Secretary-General of the Ministry of Agriculture. In a statement to the Jordan News Agency (Petra) on Wednesday, Hiyari underscored a noteworthy decrease in agricultural imports, plummeting from JD4.16 billion in 2022 to JD3.7 billion in 2023, marking a significant 10.4 percent decline. These imports, he highlighted, constitute approximately 20.5 percent of Jordan's total imports. Contrarily, despite prevailing regional challenges impacting Jordanian exports, the agricultural sector demonstrated resilience by augmenting the value of its exports from JD968.7 million in 2022 to JD1.126 billion in 2023, marking an impressive 16 percent surge. Notably, agricultural exports now contribute around 13.6 percent to Jordan's total export revenue. Hiyari attributed these positive outcomes to the s uccessful implementation of the National Plan for Sustainable Agriculture 2022-2025, which aims to bolster the agricultural sector, elevate agricultural exports, generate employment opportunities, and enhance the livelihoods of small-scale farmers. The comprehensive plan encompasses various facets, aligning efforts toward organizing and fortifying the agricultural domain. It tackles challenges by prioritizing export-oriented crops for foreign markets and strategically addresses crops crucial for bolstering self-sufficiency, thereby reducing reliance on imports. Source: Jordan News Agency