Jordan plans to build new city to accommodate up to 1 million people

Jordan's Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh has announced a plan to build a new city in the north of the kingdom, as part of its economic and administrative modernisation efforts.

The city, which is expected to be located about 40 km from the Jordanian capital of Amman and 31 km from Zarqa city, will be built on and surrounded by state-owned land, thus facilitating the project's decision-making, the state-run Petra news agency quoted Khasawneh as saying on Tuesday.

Research and planning of the project are expected to be completed in two years, while infrastructure construction will begin in 2025, Petra reported.

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Khasawneh added that a ministerial committee had been set up to supervise the project's progress, noting that a government-owned company would later handle the management and follow-up on the implementation of the project, Xinhua news agency reported.

The city would be based on a public-private partnership, and a number of buildings and facilities would be constructed on a build-operate-transfer basis, he said.

Khasawneh expected the first phase of the project, which includes the planning, to be concluded by early 2025, and infrastructure building, which is part of the project's second phase, would start in the same year.

Minister of Government Communication Faisal Shboul said the city's population would exceed 157,000 in the first phase and reach 1 million at the final stage by 2050.

Shboul predicted that the new city would create 90,000 jobs and benefit the labor and construction sectors while it was being built.

During a meeting on Tuesday, Khasawneh briefed King Abdullah II of Jordan on the project.

The king asked the government to form an advisory committee made up of specialists and experts for the city's planning, to ensure that the city will become an architectural and urban model that meets the sustainability needs for resources, energy, water and environment.

Indo-Asian News Service