Yesterday I was invited to the Royal Court for a meeting with King Abdullah II but that was not linked to the government reshuffle! The meeting was a "lunch meeting" that the King asked for with representatives of the Jordanian governorates with the presence of some journalists and writers-hence my invitation- for discussing potential economic and developmental projects. The meeting comes in a... [read more]

We are feeling the peculiar situation in Amman. Ordinary Jordanians are finding it a tough task to manage their savings to the point where they can be able to buy a property or an apartment for the family. The real estate boom is Jordan has benefited a few and caused a major concern of economic security for the majority of Jordanians. Here is a report published by the Oxform Business Group on the... [read more]

The monthly Jordanian magazine "Jordan Business" which is one of the most respectful and professional publications in Jordan came up with a nice idea to identify the 30 most influential people in Jordan. The list was published in this July 2006 issues and for the record I would like to post the names in a packaging system that I have developed. The magazine drew the list without particular order ... [read more]

As a remarkable contribution from the Arab World to the process of civilization in Great Britain, and after considering all opportunities and priorities for spending £390million, and after leaving out the unnecessary issues of fighting hunger in the Arab world, rebuilding Palestine and Lebanon, fighting illeteracy and stopping infectious disease, the Emirates Airlines (Fly Emirates) has decided to... [read more]

The Jordanian Government is almost certian to sell its majority shares in the highly profitable and successful Jordan TeleCom. The negotiations have been underway with France TeleCom, the holders of 40% of the current shares, and with the Jordanian tycoon Sabih Al-Masri who is offering the government 1.5 billion JDs to get hold of all the 81% shares of the government and France Telecom in the company... [read more]

So we have been living in an illusion in the past decade, believing that Dubai is the most expensive city in the Arab world. It has been proved as a misconception by the highly credible Economist Intelligence Unit who have carried out a global survey on the living expenses in 128 countries in the world compared to incomes. The results were published in a recent feature in the London-based Al Sharq... [read more]

So, this is another riddle by the World Economic Forum surveys conducted with the Gallup International Institute. The annual survey for "world leaders"- Davos participants- that paves the ground for the annual World Economic Forum meeting in Davos has asked the opinions of 2,500 world leaders was linked to the Gallup International "Voices of the People" survey based on the opinions of 50,000 people... [read more]

It has been really done by the Upper House of Parliament. They have rejected the Incom Tax law, based on a request from the government, which was based also on a wide public campaign organized and energized by the civil society and press.   This is a victory for democracy in Jordan. The Senate told Prime Minister Marouf Bakhit,  that the law was in conflict with His Majesty King Abdullah's Letter... [read more]

The year 2006 is expected to witness the launch of a long-term process of survival for the Middle Class in Jordan, to be added to the continuous survival battle fought by the poor since decades. The main element of this survival battle is the new Income Tax law, which is a major threat to the family budget and savings of the Middle class in Jordan.    The Bakhit government promised in its policy... [read more]