Tunis/Tunisia — Political motives are behind failure to implement properly the Agadir Agreement, said Tunisian and Jordanian business operators.

There is need to separate politics from economy, Chairman of the Jordanian Businessmen Association Hamdi Al-Tabaa'a told TAP on the fringes of a visit by a Tunisian business delegation to Amman (November 29-December 4).

The Greater Arab Free Trade Area made a good start before being heavily impacted by inter-Arab conflicts, he said.

"Economic dynamics call for Arab partnerships, the free mobility of the workforce and the free movement of the capital in a market of 100 million customers," he added.

"If the Agadir agreement comes to be implemented, job generation will be fostered and Arab capitals will not have to leave the region," Al-Tabaa'a further said.

The agreement, which took effect in in 2007, provides for increased trade, the free flow of goods, scaled-up Arab-Mediterranean partnership and the establishment of a Euromediterranean free trade area.

In another vein, Hamdi Al-Tabaa'a said Tunisia can take advantage from Jordan's free trade agreement with the USA by means of exporting olive products, handicrafts and leather to Jordan.