AMMAN — Economists ruled out the
government’s ability to accept one of 20 recommendations made by the
Lower House Finance Committee, which called for an increase in the salaries of
employees and retirees in the public sector, saying that in light of the severe
budget deficit and high national debt, it is almost impossible to meet that
demand, Amman Net reported Sunday.
اضافة اعلان
Minister of Finance Mohammad Al-Ississ asked during
the Lower House discussion of the budget draft law “where will these extra
funds come from in light of the estimated budget deficit of $2.4 billion?”
The committee also recommended that retired
employees’ pensions that are less than JD300 be increased by JD15, pensions
that are lower than JD250 be increased by JD25, and those that are lower than
JD200 be increased by JD50.
Member of the
Finance Committee Dirar Al-Harasis
said that this recommendation comes at a time employees and retirees are
suffering from difficult conditions due to low salaries, and the country is
going through a tough economic situation due to the repercussions of the
pandemic.
He added that the committee is waiting for the
government’s response to its recommendations, asking that the issue be
considered seriously and result in raises, similar to those of workers and
retirees in the military, whose salaries were increased during 2019.
The Department of Statistics announced that the
general consumer price index increased in 2021 by 1.35 percent, to reach 102.46
percent, compared to 101.10 percent during 2020.
According to official data, the average salary for
workers in the public and private sectors is JD416 per month. The average
salary for men in the Kingdom in both sectors was JD429 and for women JD379 per
month.
Economist Mufleh Al-Akel said that it is not
possible to improve the financial situation of retirees in the absence of
foreign investments and without increasing economic growth rates, which would
help reduce the budget deficit.
Economic expert Qassem Al-Hammouri said it is
important that the government adopt this recommendation, as it will achieve
positive results by improving the living conditions of families, on the one
hand, and moving the economic wheel, on the other.
However, he admitted that it is impossible to implement this
recommendation, given the budget deficit, and stressed that it is important to
paying attention to recovering public funds, including state funds in the
public domain.
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