Posted by
alfredlester on Sunday, April 04, 2010 3:12:47 PM
AMMAN (AFP) – International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn said on Sunday that Jordan needs to strike a balance between its education system and market needs in order to boost the economy.
"The problem is the inadequacy between the education system and the needs of the private sector," Strauss-Kahn told reporters in Amman at a joint news conference with Central Bank Governor Umayya Tukan.
"The paradox is that the level of education in Jordan is rather high, very high I could say, and at the same time you have a very high level of youth and unemployment."
He said one reason for this is that "the skills your people acquire at university are not the ones which are needed at the private sector."
According to the IMF, unemployment is 12.7 percent in the country of around six million people, 70 percent of whom under 30, but other estimates put unemployment at 25 percent.
Strauss-Kahn said that the private sector in Jordan was "weak" and must play a greater role in the economy in order to bolster "growth in the future."
He also expected the kingdom&&9;s economy to grow by four percent this year but said "this is not enough."
"But I still see a rather strong possibility for the Jordan economy to do well in the coming years," said Strauss-Kahn, who held talks with King Abdullah II, Prime Minister Samir Rifai and Finance Minister Mohammad Abu Hammur business card templates.
Turning to the local currency, Strauss-Kahn said Jordan should continue to peg the dinar on the US dollar.
Last month, Standard and Poor&&9;s downgraded its long-term local currency ratings for Jordan to BBB- from BBB, citing rising government debt and weaker fiscal flexibility.
Strauss-Kahn also said the global economy was still recovering from the financial crisis.
"The recovery is coming sooner than expected. I am not saying that the crisis is over, but we are certainly beginning to recover. We are not out of the woods and we have to be cautious," he said.
Strauss-Kahn, who arrived in Jordan on Saturday, also met students from eight universities from the Middle East, North Africa, and Pakistan.
They discussed "ways to address policy challenges facing the economies of the region and its youth," the IMF said in a statement.
The meeting was part of the IMF Middle East Youth Dialogue initiative "to engage with the youth of the region to get their perspectives on their economic future and to motivate their thinking at an early stage on policy measures that will be needed to secure sustainable economic growth in the region," it added.
IMF chief urges Jordan to balance education, market needs