'Sawtouna' project - YEA calls for the reduction of the minimum capital requirement for Limited Liability Companies

Participants included His Excellency Mr. Salem Al Khaza'leh Minister of Industry and Trade, His Excellency Dr. Mahmoud Ababneh companies' controller, and a number of Jordanian businessmen and association representatives.

The reduction of minimum capital requirements for LLCs, is the first of nine issues that will be studied. These priority issues were derived from the recommendations compiled during the Entrepreneurship Jordan Forum of 2004.

The research paper prepared by Envision Consulting Group, recommends reducing the minimum capital for LLCs to JD10, and the registration fees required to 50JDs. It also recommends faster registration of companies by reducing the number of days spent on registration paperwork to one day.

The research paper provides some background on the issue, and briefs the reader on the business environment in Jordan, focusing on LLCs, as compared to the region and the world. The paper also details previous efforts to change the capital requirements, and details the economic costs of the status quo and the ultimate impact of the changes suggested. Particular attention was given to the effect on Small and Medium Enterprises and Start-ups.

In addition to gathering stakeholders and members' input, feedback and concerns, this discussion was held to garner support from policy makers and the public at large. Fadi Otaqui, Sawtouna Coordinator, spoke in brief about their efforts and presented the research paper highlighting its main recommendations.

His Excellency showed great interest in the presentation concerning the Reduction of the Minimum Capital Requirement for Limited Liability Companies, and he assured "Sawtouna" team that the matter will be looked into and implemented in due time.

"Sawtouna" was formed, and is overseen by, the Public Policy Advocacy Committee (PPAC) at the Young Entrepreneurs' Association (YEA), which has been advocating public policy reform through proactive position papers to legislative bills since the YEA's inception in 1999. The project "Sawtouna" aims to make business ownership an accessible concept to all socio-economic strata through legislative and structural reform.

YEA is the leading association serving Jordanian entrepreneurs. The association offers entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs, mentoring, networking, direction and self-development services. These services consist of holding events, activities, workshops and trainings, which aim at enhancing the capabilities of youth who seek the establishment of their own businesses, and intend on contributing to the success of their local community.