The representative of the foodstuff sector in the Jordan Chamber of Commerce (JCC), Raed Hamadeh, called on restaurants and sweets shops to strictly apply the measures that were put in place to preserve the safety and health of citizens from the spread of the coronavirus.

In press statements Friday, Hamadeh said that strict measures, especially with regard to wearing a face mask and adhering to social distancing inside restaurants and sweets shops, guarantees the continuation of work, and limits the high numbers of COVID-19 infections.

Hamadeh stated that the commercial and service sectors cannot handle the imposition of any further restrictions or lockdowns during the next period due to the severe losses they incurred as a result of the initial closures in attempts to tackle coronavirus infections.

Hamadeh explained that the lifting of the Friday total lockdown was an important move for the sector, adding that Friday is a vital and important day for the economic health of restaurants and sweet shops. He said that Friday’s constitute more than 40 percent of the total sales of the week for these establishments, which will positively affect their sales and make them more able to fulfill the obligations arising from them and maintain employment stability.

Hamadeh reiterated the importance of opening closed economic sectors and allowing them to return to practice their business, indicating that the business chains of the commercial and service sectors are interconnected and complementary to each other, and that the suspension of the activity of a particular sector affects the overall commercial movement.

According to Hamadeh, there are about 18,000 commercial stores operating in the restaurants and sweets sector in the Kingdom, employing nearly 100,000 workers, most of who are Jordanian.