Amman- Jordan’s Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Minister Imad Fakhoury said that the national economy needs to close up holes weakening its build and inhibiting its progress towards expanding its pro-investment environment, creating more employment opportunities, and developing female contribution to the economy.

Both Jordan and the U.N. agreed on modifying the next U.N. strategic development partnership framework (U.N.S.D.P.F.) in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals and the priorities of the Jordanian government.

Addressing representatives of U.N. agencies in the Kingdom, the minister called for following certain priorities while drafting the U.N.S.D.P.F.

“The government of Jordan, in May, officially requested the U.N. to adopt what is known as the ‘Delivering as One approach’, where we would like to take the preparation of this 2018-2022 U.N.S.D.P.F. as an opportunity to start implementing this approach,” Fakhoury said at the opening of the U.N. strategic prioritization retreat.

He added that Jordan is looking forward to “operationalizing” this approach through adopting collective outcomes across the humanitarian and development sectors, where “we would like to see the integration of humanitarian planning under the strategic framework of the U.N.S.D.P.F.”

“We believe that the ‘Delivering as One approach’ will be an opportunity to further strengthen the effectiveness and coherence of the U.N. assistance in Jordan and ensure a better donor coordination process,” Fakhoury added.

These priorities include drafting a strategy that is aligned with Jordan Vision 2025, addressing structural weakness in the economy and building more responsive public institutions.

Jordan’s priority goals also include tackling the country’s gender gap through promoting increased political and economic participation of women, and improving Jordan’s human resources development system in line with the recently launched National Strategy for Human Resources Development 2016-2025.

Jordan, in addition, seeks to alleviate poverty and unemployment with a focus on “implementation rather than just policies and strategies”, according to the minister.

The U.N. and the government have already formulated “thematic consultation groups” in line with the key elements of Agenda 2030. The emergent themes are: “People and Dignity”, “Prosperity”, “Planet” and “Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions”.

According to Edward Kallon, the U.N. resident and humanitarian coordinator to Jordan, the U.N.S.D.P.F. will guide U.N. agencies’ work and their “interventions” in Jordan for five years.

He added that since the first meeting of the steering committee which kicked off the U.N.S.D.P.F. in August, the U.N. country team in Jordan has embarked on its common country assessment to examine the challenges confronting Jordan and their root causes with a view to begin crafting an appropriate and responsive vision for change.