Amman, July 27 (Petra) – The Jordan Strategy Forum (JSF) issued a
policy paper titled “Jordan and Economic Corridors: Strategic
Opportunities in a Changing Global Economy,” which addressed the
rapid transformations in international trade and transport networks,
and opportunities that emerging economic corridors offer Jordan to
enhance its standing in the regional and global trade and
connectivity system.
The Forum explained that geopolitical tensions, frequent disruptions
to supply chains, and escalating concerns related to trade and energy
security have prompted many countries to diversify their transport
routes and reduce reliance on a limited number of maritime routes and
strategic bottlenecks.
As a result, economic corridors are no longer limited to the
construction of roads and railways, but now encompass maritime and
land transport, energy networks, digital infrastructure, logistics
services, and industrial and investment cooperation.
The paper reviewed key corridors and initiatives that have recently
reshaped trade between Asia, the Middle East, and Europe, including
China’s Belt and Road Initiative, the Trans-Caspian Middle East
Corridor, the North-South International Transport Corridor, the
Iraq-Turkey Development Corridor, the India-Middle East-Europe
Economic Corridor (IMEC), and the Jordanian-Syrian-Turkish Transport
Initiative.
The JSF emphasized the need to view these initiatives, not as
competing alternatives, but a network of integrated routes Jordan can
leverage within a multi-corridor national strategy.
It explained that relying on a single route could increase Jordan’s
vulnerability to geopolitical risks and trade disruptions, while
diversifying routes offers greater flexibility, expands trade
connectivity options, and strengthens the economy’s resilience.
The IMEC is among the most influential routes for Jordan’s future
options in trade, transport, and energy, along with the
Jordanian-Syrian-Turkish Transport Initiative, which offers a
valuable opportunity to revitalize its traditional land routes
through the Levant through utilizing and developing the Hejaz
Railway, the forum said.
The IMEC comprises an eastern route connecting Indian ports to ports
in the Arabian Gulf via maritime transport, and a northern route
linking the Gulf states to the Mediterranean and Europe through a
network of railways and roads. It also includes projects for
electrical interconnection, hydrogen pipelines, fiber optic cables,
and advanced digital infrastructure, JSF said.
According to estimates in the paper, the corridor requires
approximately 2,800 kilometers of new railway infrastructure, with
total investments estimated at around $20 billion based on available
preliminary data. Various studies also indicate the potential to
reduce transit time via the corridor by 40% to 51%, cut transport
costs by about 30%, and achieve annual logistical savings exceeding
$5 billion.
These savings are particularly important for high-value industries,
such as pharmaceuticals, electronics, automotive components, and
advanced manufacturing, whose competitiveness is directly affected by
shipping costs, speed of market access, and the reliability of supply
chains, the paper said.
It also indicated that the Jordanian-Syrian-Turkish transport
initiative could provide an integrated route linking the Gulf states,
via Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, and Turkey, to European markets,
noting that this route relies more heavily on rehabilitating existing
infrastructure compared to projects requiring entirely new transport
networks.
This could allow for its reactivation in a shorter timeframe and at
relatively lower costs, provided that regional stability and
coordination are ensured, and damaged infrastructure is
rehabilitated, the paper added.
In the analysis of trade among the countries included in the
integrated route, which combines the economic corridor and the
Jordanian-Syrian-Turkish transport initiative, the paper showed that
the volume of intra-regional trade reached approximately $740 billion
in 2024. It also indicated that the European Union accounted for
approximately 37.7% of this trade, followed by the Gulf Cooperation
Council countries at 24.5%, and then India at 19.4%.
In this context, the forum emphasized that these figures reflect a
broad trade base that can be built on among the countries of the
corridor. However, they also show that Jordan still holds a limited
share of trade flows within the countries included in the integration
process.
The forum also estimated the total untapped export opportunities
among the countries in the integration process at about $681.8
billion, concentrated primarily with the European Union ($311.8
billion), followed by the Gulf Cooperation Council countries ($131.1
billion), Turkey ($121.6 billion), and India ($111.8 billion).
The forum stressed the importance of ensuring that the economic
benefits of the corridor are not limited to the large economies that
currently hold the largest share of intra-regional trade. These
benefits must extend to countries less integrated into regional
trade, including Jordan, to facilitate access for their products to
European and Asian markets and to encourage investment in their
infrastructure to enhance their integration into global value chains,
it added.
The importance of trade connectivity for Jordan stems from the nature
of its small, open economy and its heavy reliance on foreign markets,
said the forum.
The average value of exports and imports of goods and services stood
at about 101.4% of GDP during the period 2022–2024, placing Jordan
among the most trade-dependent economies in the region, it said.
The forum affirmed that this level of trade openness makes the
efficiency of transport, logistics, and transit procedures key
determinants of the performance of the Jordanian economy, not merely
supporting factors.
//Petra//SS
