Gov’t presents 2023 draft budget to Parliament

AMMAN — Finance Minister Mohamad Al-Ississ presented on Monday the 2023 draft budget law to Parliament, estimating total expenditures at JD9.839 billion, an increase of about JD766 million, or 8.4 percent, compared to 2022.اضافة اعلان

This increase, he said, is due to an increase of about JD153 million in allocations to the military and public security bodies. Increases, totaling JD135 million, in the salaries of civil service workers also played a role he said. Pensions of military and civilian retirees will also increase, amounting to around JD24 million, he said.



Ississ also attributed the increase in expenditures to the JD149-million increase in interest payments, which will total JD1.577 billion, a JD149 million increase from 2022. He blamed this on higher global interest rates as a result of policies aimed at containing global inflation.

The aforementioned increases, he said, amount to around 82 percent of the total current expenditures.



Operating expenses for the Civil Service Bureau for the year 2023 amount to JD498 million, or 5 percent of total current expenditures. The health sector makes up about 44 percent of those expenses, of which medical supplies and medicines constitute the largest part.

In terms of capital expenditures, they were estimated at JD1.592 billion for 2023, an increase of JD104 million, or 7 percent, from 2022.

Allocations for the Economic Modernization Vision projects and the public sector reform accounted for 22 percent of capital expenditures, while projects for military and public security and civil defense bodies accounted for 17 percent. Projects for municipal development and decentralization projects accounted for 17 percent and allocations for ongoing projects accounted for about 44 percent of the total capital expenditures.

The budget deficit after grants in 2023 will reach about JD1.862 billion.

Accordingly, public expenditures were estimated at JD11.432 billion, an increase of JD871 million, or 8.2 percent over their level for 2022.

In terms of revenues, local revenues for were estimated at JD8.767 billion, an increase of JD829 million, or 10.4 percent, over 2022. Tax revenues will increase by about JD696 million, or 11.7 percent. Meanwhile, non-tax revenues will increase by about JD133 million, or 6.6 percent, and this growth in non-tax revenues is exactly equal to the growth rate of GDP at nominal prices for the year 2023.



External grants were estimated at JD802 million in 2023, compared to JD796 million in 2022. Public revenues meanwhile were estimated at JD9.569 billion for this year, recording an increase of about JD835 million, or 9.6 percent over last year.

The budget deficit after grants in 2023 will reach about JD1.862 billion.



Ississ added that the initial budget deficit, which is considered one of the most important indicators of financial sustainability and which compares domestic revenues to public expenditures, excluding public debt service, will decline for the third year in a row.

This year, he said, it will reach about 2.9 percent of the GDP, and is expected to continue its gradual decline to about 0.9 percent in 2025.

Ississ added that public debt will decrease for the third year in a row by about 1.5 percent in 2023, reaching 88.2 percent of GDP, and the percentage will continue to gradually decline to reach 84.2 percent in 2025.


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