Amman, May 24 (Petra) – Jordan has made major advancements in
expanding food availability and increasing the added value of its
agricultural production despite severe water resource limitations,
marking key achievements in the sector since independence.

The Ministry of Agriculture reported that Jordan reached a
self-sufficiency rate of 61.4 percent across all food groups in 2024.
The Kingdom recorded production levels that exceed domestic demand
for fresh vegetables and table eggs, demonstrating substantial
progress in national food availability.

The Ministry noted that the added value of agricultural production
has risen to 2.4 billion dinars, reflecting a growth rate of 7.4
percent.

Vegetable production reached 1.8 million tons and fruit production
climbed to 549,000 tons, diversifying varieties to fulfill both
domestic and export markets. Concurrently, Jordanian agricultural
exports reached 112 countries, totaling 1.68 billion dinars in 2025.

To institutionalize these efforts, Jordan established the Food
Security Council in 2023. This body was upgraded by a cabinet
decision on June 28, 2025, to become the Supreme Council for Food
Security, chaired by the Prime Minister with the Minister of
Agriculture serving as vice-chair.

Furthermore, the state launched a National Food Security Information
Management System on October 28, 2024, operating as a unified
platform tracking 33 national and international indicators.

The Ministry also introduced its first National Food Security
Strategy 2021–2030, alongside dedicated action plans and a national
food waste index, which established a baseline to reduce household
food waste – currently estimated at 950,000 tons annually – by 30
percent by 2033.

These strategic initiatives improved Jordan’s standing on the Global
Hunger Index for 2025, where the Kingdom’s rank rose to 54th out of
123 countries as its index score dropped from 12.0 to 10.3 points.

According to the State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World
(SOFI) 2025 report, the prevalence of undernourishment in Jordan
decreased from 17.9 percent to 14.3 percent.

Additionally, the proportion of the population unable to afford a
healthy diet fell from 11.5 percent to 10.7 percent, decreasing the
estimated number of individuals in this category from 1.3 million to
1.2 million.

In the livestock sector, exports of live sheep and goats reached 1.35
million heads, valued at 245 million dinars. Total livestock count
reached 3.8 million heads, providing income for rural and Badia
communities and generating animal products valued at 1.305 billion
dinars.

The total agricultural workforce also expanded to 261,000 workers. To
back this growth, the Agricultural Credit Corporation raised its
capital to 100 million dinars, allocating over 65 million dinars in
annual agricultural loans.

This financial inclusion helped maintain self-sufficiency in core
vegetables like tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, zucchini, and eggplants;
fruits such as apricots and olives; and animal products including
goat meat, fresh milk, table eggs, and 79 percent of poultry meat.

The Ministry’s strategy for agro-industries focuses on three pillars.
The first is an agricultural industrial complex in the Southern Ghor
spanning 135 dunams, where two factories with five production lines
are 90 percent complete, drawing an expected private investment of 8
million dinars.

The second pillar involves incentivizing agro-industries in
industrial estates by covering hangar rents for five years, resulting
in 15 signed agreements and an expected 14 million dinars in
investment. The third pillar provides concessionary loans with a 2
percent interest rate and a funding ceiling of 500,000 dinars per
company.

To integrate modern agricultural technology, the Ministry established
six training centers that trained 6,000 unemployed individuals and
agricultural engineers, alongside two entrepreneurship centers in
Al-Mujib and Al-Tannour focusing on smart farming for 400 engineers.
Interest-free loan packages were provided, and 15 million dinars was
allocated between 2024 and 2030 to expand the use of advanced
agritech.

Regionally, Jordan hosted the Regional Forum for Accelerating Food
Systems Transformation in the Arab Region in October 2024, which
concluded with the “Amman Declaration” to build sustainable regional
food systems.

The state also launched the pilot phase of the Regional Food Security
and Nutrition Observatory for the Mashreq countries in cooperation
with the FAO, involving Egypt, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine.

Globally, Jordan chaired the International Olive Council and the
Executive Bureau of the Arab Organization for Agricultural
Development, while working to host regional offices for ACSAD and the
CIHEAM Bari Institute.

Key projects launched by the Ministry include offering 36,000 dunams
for investment in the Hammad and Sirhan basins, partnering with the
private sector to invest in 11 agricultural stations, and
establishing a bio-secure zone to increase live animal trade.

Additional milestones include operating the National Seed Bank,
launching the Jordan-Palestine Agricultural Products Marketing
Company, and opening 12,000-square-meter permanent rural product
exhibitions in Amman and Irbid.

//Petra// AA