Amman — As transformations in regional trade and supply chains accelerate, Jordan is increasingly positioned to expand its role from a transit corridor for goods into a regional hub for managing and connecting shipping and logistics operations across the Arab world.
The Kingdom can capitalize on its geographic location, transport infrastructure, Aqaba Port, network of land crossings, and growing transit and re-export activity.
Experts and specialists said Jordan has the fundamentals needed to play a larger role in regional trade networks. They noted that the economic value of such a transformation would extend beyond increasing the volume of goods in transit to include warehousing, cargo handling, freight management, distribution, re-export and multimodal transport, along with the investment, employment and support-service opportunities associated with these activities.
The opportunity has gained additional momentum with Jordan hosting the first conference of the Arab Freight Forwarders Alliance, known as “UFA,” attended by 100 shipping and logistics companies representing 18 Arab countries. The conference also saw the launch of the first Jordanian-Arab platform aimed at strengthening cooperation and partnerships among companies and institutions operating in shipping, customs clearance and logistics services in Jordan and across the Arab world.
Secretary-General of the Jordan Shipping Association Captain Mohammad Al-Dalabeh said the association’s participation in the Arab Freight Forwarders Alliance conference aims to strengthen the presence of Jordan’s maritime sector at specialized regional events, expand professional networks and explore opportunities that could support the Kingdom’s shipping and logistics sector.
He said the conference would provide a regional platform to enhance cooperation and integration among Arab shipping and logistics companies, explore partnership and business-development opportunities and open new markets, while discussing the challenges and opportunities facing Arab supply chains and Jordan’s role as a regional logistics hub.
Al-Dalabeh highlighted the importance of bilateral meetings among participating companies in building commercial partnerships, alongside the launch of a Jordanian-Arab platform to strengthen communication among companies and institutions operating in shipping, customs clearance and logistics.
He said strengthening regional cooperation and developing solutions that facilitate the flow of trade and supply chains would enhance Jordan’s and Aqaba Port’s position in regional trade and supply networks and strengthen the Kingdom’s role within the Arab shipping and logistics system.
UFA Chairman Ouda Al-Ramahi said the alliance is opening new opportunities for small companies that lack sufficient capacity to reach reliable companies in the Arab world and internationally, helping them expand, grow and access new markets.
Al-Ramahi said the alliance is working to attract members from countries around the world and provide logistics solutions across the region, while positioning Aqaba Port as a logistics gateway serving neighboring countries and capitalizing on faster cargo handling and access.
The alliance also seeks to strengthen connectivity between the Red Sea and the Mediterranean through multimodal transport, he added.
He revealed that among the conference’s most notable practical outcomes was the signing of more than 30 cooperation agreements between Arab companies, alongside opening new markets and preparations for an agreement between UFA and Jordan Post.
The figure is significant in assessing the alliance’s economic impact, as it moves the initiative beyond meetings and business networking toward building actual partnerships.
Al-Ramahi said the ambition is to build an interconnected Arab logistics network capable of competing and expanding internationally and enabling Arab companies to access global markets.
He stressed that the alliance’s real success will be measured by the ability of small companies to reach new markets through the UFA network, enabling Arab agents to find reliable partners in countries where they seek to operate and turning relationships among network members into actual business that strengthens Arab trade.
Fundamentals Supporting the Transformation
Economic expert Dr. Qasem Al-Hamouri said Jordan possesses a range of fundamentals that can be leveraged to strengthen its role as a logistics hub, foremost among them stability, qualified human resources and a geographic location connected to regional markets.
He said Jordan’s proximity to Iraq and Syria enables it to play a logistics role in supplying part of the needs of neighboring markets, while also potentially providing services linked to trade flows and future reconstruction efforts.
Al-Hamouri noted that although Aqaba Port is relatively limited in size compared with major regional ports, efficient management could enable it to provide services for trade and transit activity, alongside the development of ports and inland centers to strengthen the integration of Jordan’s logistics system.
He stressed that the opportunity should not be viewed solely from the perspective of goods transit. Jordan can combine transit operations with freight management, distribution and various logistics services, generating jobs and enhancing local expertise and capabilities.
The economic impact also extends to supporting activities such as transportation, hotels, restaurants and other services, meaning logistics activity can generate a broader chain of economic activity rather than being limited to storing and transporting goods.
Foreign trade indicators support the prospects for expanding Jordan’s logistics role. The latest data from the Department of Statistics showed that re-exports rose by 67.2% during the first seven months of this year to JD886 million.
National exports increased by 4.6% to JD5.509 billion, bringing total exports to JD6.395 billion, an increase of 10.3% compared with the same period last year.
Imports, meanwhile, stood at JD11.585 billion, up 2.4%, while the trade deficit fell by 6% to JD5.190 billion.
The growth in re-exports is particularly significant in the context of Jordan’s logistics role, as this activity is linked to transportation, warehousing, cargo handling, customs clearance, shipment management and distribution services. This strengthens the prospects for expanding Jordan’s share of value-added logistics services.
Aqaba as a Maritime Gateway
On the maritime front, the latest data from the Jordan Shipping Association showed that total cargo handled through Aqaba’s ports, excluding vehicles and containers, increased by 14.3% during the first nine months of this year to 20.51 million tonnes, compared with around 17.95 million tonnes during the same period last year.
Container handling rose by 6.6% to 786,948 TEUs, compared with 738,349 containers during the corresponding period last year.
Transit activity emerged as one of the strongest indicators of Aqaba’s expanding logistics role. Transit containers increased by 151.8% to 115,762 TEUs, compared with around 45,000 containers during the same period last year.
Containers bound for Iraq recorded a 1,040.5% increase, reaching 56,286 containers compared with 4,935 during the corresponding period last year, reflecting Aqaba’s growing role in serving transit trade to neighboring markets.
Vehicle traffic through Aqaba’s ports also increased. Vehicle imports rose by 114.9% to 142,955 vehicles, while exports surged by more than 1,245% to 18,568 vehicles.
The growth was driven by increased vehicle transit activity toward Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states, further highlighting the importance of specialized ports and the warehousing, transportation and logistics services associated with them.
These indicators give practical weight to the idea of transforming Jordan into a regional logistics hub, particularly if Aqaba Port is effectively connected with land transport, logistics centers, border crossings and networks of Arab and international companies.
Services Add More Value Than Transit
Economic expert Mohammad Al-Bashir said the conditions the region has experienced in recent years, including disruptions affecting ports, trade corridors and supply chains, have increased the importance of Jordan’s location for regional trade and shipping.
He explained that the concept of a logistics role extends beyond the traditional form of transit, in which trucks and goods simply pass through a country. It includes warehousing, ports, cargo handling, reprocessing and leveraging the trade agreements linking Jordan to international markets.
Al-Bashir said improvements in Jordan’s logistics infrastructure in recent years have strengthened its ability to accommodate additional activity.
The potential returns, he noted, are not limited to transportation. They can also support growth and employment and create opportunities for small companies to benefit from warehousing, trade and related processing activities.
Experts said Jordan’s transformation into an Arab logistics hub will not be determined solely by the volume of goods passing through its territory, but by its ability to increase the value it adds to those goods through freight management, warehousing, cargo handling, distribution and re-export, as well as by building a business network connecting Jordanian companies with Arab and international counterparts.
The agreements reached at the UFA conference will put this approach to a practical test in the coming period. The network’s impact will be measured by the volume of business converted into actual contracts, the number of new markets entered by Jordanian companies—particularly small and medium-sized enterprises—and the Kingdom’s ability to attract and manage a larger share of regional logistics services based on its location, infrastructure and trade relationships.
These efforts are consistent with the Economic Modernization Vision’s targets for the transport and logistics sector. The vision seeks to increase the sector’s contribution to GDP from JD1.6 billion in 2021 to JD2.9 billion by 2033, representing annual growth of 5%, while increasing sector exports from JD400 million to JD900 million.
It also aims to strengthen regional connectivity and capitalize on Jordan’s strategic location to provide transit routes serving countries across the region.
Source: Al-Ghad
