By Mohammad Ben Hussein

AMMAN - Lawmakers on Wednesday agreed to hold a special session next month to discuss economic conditions and possible measures to combat rising prices.

During a three-hour session, deputies insisted that a discussion on the economy be held before any deliberations are made on the draft fiscal budget for 2008, which is slated for the end of January.

As many as 60 lawmakers had earlier submitted a petition to Lower House Speaker Abdul Hadi Majali to table the issue for immediate discussion.

Observers and veteran lawmakers say deputies will seek commitment from the government in finding practical measures to help citizens cope with the increased cost of living.

However, the outcome of the session will unlikely affect the deputies’ vote on the draft budget, which will see the government lift subsidies on fuel and other commodities. Many analysts believe the move will prompt further price hikes nationwide.

Finance Minister Hamad Kasasbeh told lawmakers last week that the government will establish a JD301 million social safety net “to help beneficiaries cope with the ramifications of lifting subsidies on certain items”.

The salaries of civil servants, army personnel, school teachers, judges, public university faculty as well as pensioners will be raised to offset the subsequent increase in the cost of living.

Civil servant and military personnel salaries will be linked to the rate of inflation, said the minister, noting that financial assistance will be higher for those who earn JD300 or less a month.

Retired civil servants and military personnel will also receive the inflation-pegged pay raise and a bonus, while allowances dispersed to National Aid Fund beneficiaries will be raised by JD10 a month, he added.

Moreover, citizens with a per capita income less than JD1,000 a year will be provided with cash assistance and health insurance coverage. The minister, however, did not say how much assistance will be provided or through what mechanism.

Prime Minister Nader Dahabi promised to carry out measures to help fight unemployment and build homes for low-income citizens.

In the Speech from the Throne inaugurating the Parliament’s session in early December, His Majesty King Abdullah asked the government and lawmakers to place economic development as a top priority in the coming four years.

“Our vision for Jordan’s future is clear and ambitious; its pillar is comprehensive reform and modernisation - political, economic and social - for the sake of attaining the ultimate goal: Improving citizens’ standard of living and providing the means for a decent life to every Jordanian family. This is the duty of all: Myself, the government and you, the two Houses of Parliament,” the King said in the speech from the Throne on December 2.

The agenda of the designated session to be held on January 8, also includes the complicated issue of day labourers at various ministries and other public institutions.

Thousands of the so-called day labourers have been lobbying for improved working conditions including health insurance and better pay.

Officials at the ministries of agriculture, public works and housing and the Greater Amman Municipality, however, say they lack funding to meet the workers’ demands.

Lawmakers also began deliberating the economic development zones bill, seen by officials as one of many available tools that can help improve the economy in various parts of the Kingdom.

The government seeks to establish a number of economic development zones in the north and south to help residents in economically deprived areas boost their income and bring in badly needed foreign currency.