The Investment and Partnership Conference between Municipalities and the Private Sector set the stage for crafting a system and forging a foundation for investment in municipalities, ensuring that the municipal leaders remain engaged to contribute their insights. According to a statement Monday, participants in the conference, which is organized by the United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Municipal Support Program and the International Republican Institute (IRI), in partnership with the Ministry of Local Administration and the Cities and Villages Development Bank, stressed the need to devise procedural handbooks for municipalities to consult when deliberating on investment projects. Participants in the conference, which was held under the patronage of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Local Administration Tawfiq Krishan, called for establishing a special fund for municipalities to develop investment projects and discuss mechanisms for accessing said funding through Islamic instruments. Further recommendations emphasized the necessity of enlisting technical experts (spanning economic, legal, and financial realms) to collaborate with municipalities in crafting feasibility studies, investment and marketing blueprints, and establishing a touchstone to bolster the ministry and municipalities in their investment and private sector partnership endeavors. Additionally, enhancing the efficiency of solid waste management, recycling, and identifying thriving business models in this domain were underscored. Convened in Aqaba, the conference delved into various investment and partnership modalities with the private sector, groundbreaking approaches to financing municipal investments and partnerships, as well as examples of existing collaborative projects between municipalities and the private sector. The sessions brought together Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Local Administration Tawfiq Krishan, representatives of USAID Jordan, officials of USAID’s Municipal Support Program and the IRI, in addition to heads and representatives of 39 municipalities, officials and specialists from official bodies and private companies that partner with municipalities. It is worthy to note that the USAID’s $40-million five-year Municipal Support Program aims at supporting and empowering municipalities and the Ministry of Local Administration in Jordan in various technical and financial fields, while the IRI works with 35 municipalities toward a similar end.

Source: Jordan News Agency