Day: November 28, 2021

His Majesty King Abdullah has sent a letter to Chairman of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People (CEIRPP)

Cheikh Niang, on the occasion of the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, marked annually on 29 November.

In the letter, King Abdullah reiterated Jordan’s unwavering position in support of the just and legitimate rights of the Palestinians, especially their right to self-determination and establishing their independent, sovereign, and viable state on the 4 June 1967 lines, with East Jerusalem as its capital, on the basis of the two-state solution and in accordance with international law and relevant UN resolutions, according to a Royal Court statement.

His Majesty said Jordan will continue its efforts to safeguard Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, under the Hashemite Custodianship, while supporting the steadfastness of Jerusalemites and preserving the historical and legal status quo in the holy city.

There can be no peace in the region as long as the occupation continues, the King noted, stressing the need to step up efforts to break the stalemate in the peace process and support measures to rebuild trust and prevent escalations and any violations that could undermine peace prospects, such as illegal Israeli settlement activities, the appropriation of land, the demolition of homes, and the expulsion of Palestinians from their homes.

His Majesty said the international community must support the Palestinian Authority to enable it to undertake its duties and responsibilities towards the Palestinian people and to support the prospects of peace.

The King stressed the importance of providing all means of support to sustain the work of UNRWA, in accordance with its UN mandate, until a just and comprehensive solution that addresses all final status issues is reached, safeguarding Palestinian rights in line with UN resolutions, foremost of which is Resolution 194, and ensuring the right of return and compensation to Palestinian refugees.

Also in the letter, His Majesty expressed appreciation of the committee’s efforts in defence of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.

Source: Jordan News Agency

In this context, Shboul urged everyone to adhere to means of prevention in terms of wearing masks, maintaining physical distancing, and using sterilizers, in addition to receiving vaccinations, in order to continue with the normal life.

With regard to Jordan’s financial obligations as a result of hosting Syrian refugees, Shboul indicated that Jordan hosts 1.3 million Syrian refugees on its territory. “Most countries in the world commend Jordan’s humanitarian role, but the obligations of the international community towards the Kingdom are less than the financial burdens borne by the state treasury, in addition to the pressure on the infrastructure.”

In response to a question during the press conference, Shboul emphasized that the “declaration of intent” between Jordan, the UAE and Israel doesn’t have any financial impact on the Kingdom, and is not included in the draft law of the 2022 general budget.

He pointed out that next year the government will include the national carrier project in the budget, which is the state’s strategic project, as it will desalinate water in Aqaba, and hence, providing Jordan with 300 million cubic meters of water.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Al-Ississ added that public sector salaries still constitute the vast majority of current expenditures at 66 per cent, followed by the public debt service at 15.6 per cent, explaining that civil apparatus salaries amount to JD1.9 billion in 2022.

He pointed out that employment is not the role of the government, but rather ensuring financial and monetary stability of the Jordanian economy that encourages the private sector to invest to create jobs, underlining the importance of the government’s role in preparing young people to enter the labor market and raising the competitiveness of the private market.

For his part, Minister Shboul said that the government will refer the two draft laws of the general budget and budgets of government units for the fiscal year 2022 to the Parliament, following their approval by the Cabinet.

He pointed out that the government was legally committed to approving the two bills before the end of November, and one month before the start of the fiscal year, noting that the 2022 budget comes in exceptional circumstances that the Kingdom is going through as a result of the continuing impacts of the Covid pandemic.

“The 2022 budget reflects the beginning of economic recovery, especially after the national economy has suffered difficult repercussions during the past two years as a result of the pandemic that affected the global economy as a whole,” Shboul said. “Our economy was negatively affected by the decline in exports and the decline in the flow of foreign investments.”

Shboul explained that the draft law of the general budget is an reflection of the government’s overall economic policy for the coming year, and also translates the government’s 2021-2023 economic work priorities program.

He also referred to the issuance of Defense Order No. (35), which will tighten procedures on individuals and institutions in the public and private sectors, as entry to them will be prohibited except for recipients of the two doses of the vaccine.

He indicated that the government gave the opportunity for nearly a month for non-recipients to receive the vaccine, before activating the new defense order at the beginning of next year.

Source: Jordan News Agency