AMMAN, August 1 (Petra) -- United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), Dr. Randa Al-Mashat, praised Jordan as a strategic partner and a pioneering developmental model operating within a volatile and crisis-affected region.

In an in-depth interview with the Jordan News Agency (Petra) during her official visit to the Kingdom, Al-Mashat stated that despite severe regional economic and geopolitical headwinds, Jordan has successfully preserved institutional stability and advanced systematic reform and modernization. She noted that the international community views these achievements as a testament to the nation's resilience and sound governance.

Al-Mashat emphasized that her visit extends beyond diplomatic protocol, serving as a clear signal of ESCWA's prioritization of Jordan as a leading testbed for evidence-based public policy. She highlighted that the visit aims to align international technical cooperation directly with the Jordanian government’s upcoming priorities under the second executive program of the Economic Modernization Vision (2026–2029).

Describing the Jordanian experience as a unique positive paradox, Al-Mashat commended the country for maintaining macroeconomic and institutional stability amid surrounding geopolitical turmoil. This stability, she noted, has provided a solid foundation for structural reforms, targeted foreign investment, and sustained confidence from international financial institutions. She specifically lauded the Economic Modernization Vision as a comprehensive, actionable roadmap, noting that its ultimate success relies on boosting national productivity, enhancing economic competitiveness, and expanding high-value-added investments.

Detailing ESCWA’s collaborative portfolio with Jordan over the past five years, Al-Mashat pointed to significant institutional milestones across multiple sectors, including advanced technical support to modernize the national statistical framework, improve the utilization of administrative registers, and strengthen monitoring mechanisms for the Sustainable Development Goals.

Furthermore, ESCWA has contributed to national forecasting and economic scenario models, revised national accounts, and established the Social Expenditure Observatory within the Ministry of Finance to link public spending with tangible developmental impacts.

In the social sphere, the organization partnered with the National Aid Fund to refine beneficiary targeting methodologies, conducted labor market skills gap analyses, and supported programs addressing gender equality, disability inclusion, and economic empowerment for vulnerable groups.

Looking ahead, Al-Mashat outlined three core pillars governing ESCWA's strategic cooperation framework with Jordan. These include fostering a knowledge-driven economy through digital economic growth and entrepreneurship, accelerating digital transformation and artificial intelligence integration into public administration to raise institutional efficiency, and reorienting social protection safety nets into active instruments of productivity and empowerment rather than passive relief mechanisms.

Addressing regional dynamics, Al-Mashat asserted that Jordan possesses exceptional geographic and institutional assets to drive broader Arab economic integration and logistical connectivity. She stressed that modern integration extends beyond traditional trade to encompass data harmonization, digital platform interoperability, regulatory alignment, and joint food and energy security frameworks.

On the challenge of youth unemployment, Al-Mashat rejected single-factor attributions, characterizing it instead as a multifaceted structural challenge requiring coordinated interventions in education, labor market alignment, and sectoral economic diversification.

She pointed to a recently signed train-the-trainer agreement between ESCWA and Jordanian agricultural stakeholders as a practical application of this approach, designed to equip national cadres with modern agrarian technologies and foster sustainable rural livelihoods.

Al-Mashat concluded by reiterating that robust employment strategies must be anchored in accurate, real-time data, affirming ESCWA’s continued commitment to supporting Jordan’s evidence-based policymaking architecture.

//Petra// AA