AMMAN — The Transport Ministry has amended relevant regulations to facilitate investments in the sector, Minister Anmar Khasawneh said on Saturday, expecting the operation of Bus Rapid Transit to begin in late 2021. 

 

Inaugurating the fifth national transport conference, Khasawneh pledged to expand the civil transport project to governorates other than the capital, facilitating electronic payment and monitoring of buses, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

 

The transport and storage sector contributed to 6 per cent of the gross domestic product in 2018, the minister noted, reviewing challenges facing the sector, such as weak funding for the infrastructure and operation of transport services. 

 

Egyptian Transport Minister Kamel Wazir called for amending regulations related to the transport sector in light of the developments the sector is witnessing.

 

Iraqi Transport Minister Abdullah Abdullah Laibi said that developing the transport sector cannot be achieved without adapting to technical advances.

 

Participants in the conference discussed issues related to smart transport planning, maritime transport and its impacts on trade routes, air freight, land and railway transport, as well as transporting goods.

 

Also on Saturday, Prime Minister Omar Razzaz met with Wazir and Laibi and highlighted the importance of enhancing Jordanian-Egyptian-Iraqi cooperation in various transport fields, Petra reported.

 

Razzaz also called for facilitating procedures to enhance the flow of transport among the three countries in a way that positively reflects on commercial exchange and economic ties. 

 

In a press conference on the sidelines of the event, Khasawneh, Wazir and Laibi referred to challenges facing the transport sectors in the three countries, mainly the remarkable increase in the population and economic situations, as well as the political and security situations in the region in general, according to Petra.