Amman, August 4 (Petra) -- The Siran Foundation for Development and Capacity Building, in cooperation with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation's Jordan Office, on Tuesday discussed a strategic policy paper titled "Enhancing the Resilience and Competitiveness of the Digital Entrepreneurship Sector in Jordan." The paper was unveiled as part of a joint project of the same name during a roundtable discussion attended by decision-makers, entrepreneurs, digital economy experts, business incubators and representatives of civil society and international organisations.

Director General of the Siran Foundation Mohammad Awad called for developing evidence-based legislative and procedural frameworks to support decision-making and align policies with national development priorities.

He said current indicators underscore the urgent need to establish and institutionalize a Digital Entrepreneurship Resilience Index as a national, periodic and dynamic tool to assess the performance and resilience of Jordan's startup ecosystem.

Awad explained that the policy paper is built around six key pillars, beginning with the institutionalisation of the proposed resilience index and the enactment of a dedicated startups law that adopts positive discrimination measures to support emerging businesses.

The recommendations include introducing a simplified legal framework for startup companies through a new "Simplified Jordanian Shareholding Company" model with no minimum capital requirement, as well as replacing social security exemptions with a joint government guarantee system to help companies hire highly skilled professionals.

Veronica Ertel, Resident Representative of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation's Jordan Office, said the project provides an integrated framework of six pillars to strengthen Jordan's competitiveness as a safe and sustainable regional hub for innovation-driven investment.

MP Hussein Krishan said the government is working to update a package of laws and regulations aimed at strengthening the entrepreneurship ecosystem and the digital economy.

He noted that draft legislation is being prepared to regulate investment funds and service providers while ensuring alignment with digital transformation requirements.

Chair of the Parliamentary Committee on Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship, Mu'ayyad Alawneh, said comparisons with neighbouring countries should take into account Jordan's unique economic and regulatory environment. He added that the Kingdom offers a supportive ecosystem for startup growth.

Ziad Masri, Executive Director of Programmes and Projects at the Information and Communications Technology Association of Jordan (int@j), highlighted the association's "Startups Go" platform, which connects entrepreneurs with funding opportunities, support programmes, and ecosystem partners.

//Petra// AK