The Finance and Economic Committee of the Jordanian Senate stressed, in its report on the draft General Budget Law, the importance of closely monitoring global developments and responding to them swiftly, calling for continued support for targeted sectors.
اضافة اعلان
The report recommended drafting a dedicated law for non-banking financial institutions, encouraging insurance companies to merge through tax incentives, and motivating foreign funds to invest in the local market by granting tax exemptions, as practiced in many countries. It also emphasized studying the listing of Treasury bills on a secondary market and encouraging mutual investment funds.
The recommendations underscored the continuation of cultural activities at the district level, the implementation of mural and sculpture projects in the governorates, and the development of a clear, time-bound roadmap to implement the directives of His Royal Highness Crown Prince Hussein regarding the formulation of a Jordanian national narrative and the expansion of arts training centers across all governorates.
The report called for engaging experts as well as political and community forces in drafting the new Local Administration Law, expediting its issuance, and holding elections as soon as possible.
It proposed studying private sector participation in solid waste management and in managing municipal service projects such as markets and slaughterhouses. It also recommended accelerating the separation of the executive municipal apparatus from the elected authority, continuing financial support for the Cities and Villages Development Bank, and studying changing its name to the “Municipalities and Local Councils Development Fund” to better reflect the nature of its work. In addition, it urged faster linkage between municipalities and the Department of Lands and Surveys and the preparation of new land-use maps to protect agriculture.
The committee called for activating the Higher Health Council, completing studies to ensure comprehensive health insurance coverage for all citizens, and studying the unification of insurance funds. It also recommended preparing corporate social responsibility programs that would allow the private sector to donate to the construction of health facilities, expanding partnerships with the private sector in construction, and continuing the approach of comprehensive health centers.
The recommendations included amending the Civil Service System to raise the retirement age for specialists from 65 to 70, revising the organizational structure of the Ministry of Health so that major hospitals report directly to the minister, and ensuring that Health Insurance Fund resources are used for their original purposes.
The report stressed the need to expedite the issuance of a system for classifying associations, establish a unified database to prevent duplication of services, expand aftercare programs, senior citizens’ clubs, and inclusive education programs nationwide, and swiftly approve a social responsibility system to institutionalize fundraising.
It also called for supporting the Agricultural Credit Corporation, enhancing agricultural exports, expanding public-private partnership projects, supporting the National Agricultural Research Center and the National Seed Bank, expediting the implementation of the electronic crop-tracking project and livestock tagging, increasing focus on water-harvesting projects, combating encroachments on forest resources, and encouraging the use of modern irrigation technologies.
The committee urged the activation and integration of youth centers, continued development of the scouting movement, and studying the establishment of sports cities in the governorates within a long-term plan. It also emphasized the sustainability of water resources, halting overextraction, reducing network losses, combating violations, and continuing water-harvesting and consumption-rationalization efforts.
It recommended expediting the signing of the agreement with the United Arab Emirates to implement the Shidiya–Aqaba railway project, studying alternatives to trucks transporting phosphate and potash, accelerating the completion of the Ma’an dry port, preparing a comprehensive transportation database, conducting an in-depth study of transportation challenges in Amman in cooperation with the Greater Amman Municipality, and strengthening the Ministry of Transport with specialized staff.
The report highlighted the importance of finding alternatives for employing individuals on the Civil Service Bureau waiting list, generalizing project management training programs, and expanding the concept of comprehensive service centers. In the investment sector, it called for strengthening the Ministry of Investment with qualified personnel, granting its representatives sufficient authority, and reviewing the Investment Environment Law while evaluating granted incentives with priority given to governorates.
It also recommended revisiting the Public-Private Partnership Law, continuing support for projects of national priority, combating poverty and unemployment, enhancing cooperation with international institutions to support the private sector, providing support to the Industry Support Fund, and continuing to diversify export markets.
The report urged the government to expedite the implementation of the electronic signature system, regulate the e-commerce market, continue negotiations with the European Union to extend the Rules of Origin agreement, study the establishment of a unified umbrella for consumer institutions, and maintain market monitoring.
It stressed aligning the 2026–2030 energy strategy with the Economic Modernization Vision, increasing the share of renewable energy with a focus on storage technologies, addressing electricity losses, expanding time-of-use tariffs, monitoring the operations of the Phosphate and Potash companies to increase added value, and accelerating the transition from fixed pricing of petroleum derivatives to monthly price ceilings.
Regarding the Greater Amman Municipality, the report called for assessing its financial capacity to meet obligations, accelerating the camera installation project to improve road safety, implementing public-private partnership projects, updating the city’s master plan, and continuing the administrative development project.
In the field of innovation and technology, the committee recommended enacting legislation to regulate venture capital funds, studying the causes of startup migration in the technology sector and proposing solutions, launching cybersecurity awareness programs, and examining the possibility of restricting social media access for adolescents to protect them from exploitation, as applied in several countries.
The report also called for diversifying tourist markets to include Africa, Asia, and Gulf residents; preparing a promotional strategy for the Baptism Site; early preparation for commemorating the 2,000th anniversary of the baptism of Jesus Christ in 2038; forming a committee of archaeology experts to counter extremist Israeli claims; establishing regular transport lines to archaeological sites; and preparing feasibility studies for tourism projects.
Additionally, it recommended considering the construction of schools through public-private partnerships to address a shortfall of more than 595 schools, setting a timeline to resolve university debt, increasing the number of inclusive schools, continuing the introduction of arts and sports curricula, and supporting universities in developing programs aligned with digital transformation and labor market needs.
Finally, the report called for continuing awareness efforts to combat drug abuse, especially among minors, introducing alternative sentencing, and developing a strategic plan to reduce prison overcrowding, including studying future expansion and construction needs in line with available resources.
— PETRA
