The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Jordan and Leaders International for Economic Development (LI) launched their Corporate Entrepreneurship Responsibility Alliance (CERA) project. The four-year project aims to integrate local micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in underserved governorates across Jordan into local and international supply chains.

CERA will encourage larger Jordanian enterprises to replace their imported sources of intermediate inputs to local vendors instead. To do this, the project will promote the concept of ‘Corporate Entrepreneurship Responsibility’ to prompt larger corporates to work with local Jordanian suppliers across the value chain.

At the same time, CERA will boost the technical, human, and financial capacities of local MSMEs so they can better respond to Jordanian and global industry needs.

H.E. Dolf Hogewoning, Acting Ambassador of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Jordan stressed the importance of the project, noting that “following a tough year marked by the pandemic and its compounded social, fiscal and economic impact on Jordan, it is imperative that we engage Jordanian corporates and their social responsibility efforts in improving the dynamics of Jordanian supply chains, leveraging the benefits of local sourcing, and consequently, boosting the competitiveness of Jordanian MSMEs across the supply chain and creating more jobs in Jordan”. This project falls under the Dutch’s efforts to cultivate a stronger private sector in Jordan in order to build a more sustainable, resilient economy and create new livelihood opportunities for vulnerable Jordanians and refugees. 

Hamzeh Shamaileh, Country Manager at LI, added: “CERA will play an unequivocal role in promoting inclusion by stimulating growth in underserved governorates across Jordan. Specifically, it will address pressing issues for Jordanian MSMEs such as access to finance and deficient capacities, and on a wider scale, unemployment and poverty”.

The project will also improve market linkages for local MSMEs through different interventions such as B2B meetings, advisory services, and expos. This will enable MSMEs to integrate into global supply chains, provide specialised products, develop their operating efficiency and productivity, and foster innovation through technology transfer.