Israel increased the number of work permits it is issuing to Jordanians for employment in Eilat by 33% to 2,000, The Jerusalem Post reported Thursday.

The permits will allow Jordanians to work during the day in the resort town, located not far from the border, and return home at night.

The agreement was finalized Thursday between the Kingdom of Jordan, Israel’s Foreign Ministry, and its Population and Immigration Authority.

The program, according to the Foreign Ministry, is part of an effort to improve relations between the two nations through both economic and social cooperation.

In 2015, the first 172 Jordanians arrived in Eilat as part of the program.

Then-Israeli Interior Minister Silvan Shalom hailed the start of the program as a “day of celebration for Israeli-Jordanian cooperation,” as well as “a move that will strengthen ties between Israel and Jordan.”

Israel and Jordan have been cooperating more openly in other arenas too in recent years.

Earlier this year, Israel joined the Eastern Mediterranean Gas Forum, a formal alliance with Greece, Cyprus, Jordan, Egypt, Italy, and the Palestinians. It marked the first time that Israel was accepted into a regional alliance together with Arab nations.

“This gives Israel an additional element to its relations with its neighboring countries. When you add an economic facet to the security cooperation it strengthens the bond and gives it stability,” Oded Eran, a former Israeli ambassador to Jordan, said with regard to the forum.

Israel began exporting natural gas to Jordan in 2017.

[Photo: Oyoyoy / WikiCommons ]