AMMAN — The annual State of the Country Report has
highlighted a ‘state of uncertainty’ induced by COVID-19 and prevailing in many
social and economic sectors.
اضافة اعلان
The report was released Monday at a press conference held by
the authors, the Economic and Social Council (ESC), a government advisory arm.
It focuses on the impact of the pandemic on the country.
The report includes updates aimed at creating a framework of
accountability and urging transparency in pursuing the institutional work of
various sectors and areas.
ESC President Mohammad Al-Halayqa started the conference by
highlighting that the report of the year 2020 had different objectives compared
to the previous year, as a result of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on
Jordan.
He also identified the effects of the pandemic on the
various sectors, defined priorities for sectors after the pandemic ends, and
highlighted new ways to deal with the effects it leaves behind.
However, the pandemic was not the only factor that
contributed to the country’s economic difficulties. Halayqa told Jordan News that, “There are other economic aspects which haven’t been associated with the
pandemic that still need revisions and corrections. We are witnessing weak
economic growth, unemployment, indebtedness, as well as a budget deficit. This
created multi-faceted crises (that) deepened as the pandemic hit.”
Halayqa predicted that the rate of unemployment would
increase from 25 percent to 30 percent. The report stated that unemployment has
reached 25 percent.
“I am one of the
people who believe that putting health before economics may not be the best way
to handle the situation. Instead, we must equally focus on both of them,” he
added.
“Although there are
many signs that the pandemic will come to an end until then we cannot be
certain of the economic direction,” Halayga said.
“Many sectors will be affected even more in the future if
lockdowns continue to take place. All of these factors reflect on the future of
the country’s economy,” Halayqa said.
The report also showed that many institutions were not
well-prepared and had very few or no alternative plans to deal with these kinds
of sudden emergencies. The sudden onset of COVID-19 led to the rapid
development of new emergency plans, which may be helpful in the future.
Additionally, the report found that the pandemic unveiled a
great weakness among middle management circles and its ability to take
appropriate measures and decisions as a response to the crisis.
The report noted administrative negligence in the public
sector and the absence of many governmental procedures for coordinating between
different institutions. The report showed that many improvised decisions have
led to citizens’ confusion.
The report flagged the “major damage” that the higher
education system suffered due to the pandemic, and the sudden switch to online
education.
The report also showed that during the year 2020, government
institutions amended their strategies and implementation mechanisms and
reprioritized according to the repercussions of the pandemic. It indicated that
the government’s first response was to reduce budgets for institutions and
divert resources towards the health sector. They postponed the execution of
many projects included in the announced strategies.
The council did not provide a clear conclusion on the impact
of the pandemic, since it has not ended. However, it did provide a general
picture of both the opportunities and challenges that emerged in 2020 for
various sectors and fields. The council will be providing the report to
ministries, as well as to concerned authorities so that they can review it and
take advantage of its recommendations.
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