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AMMAN — Current storage at the country’s major dams is 24.8 per cent lower than what the dams held during this period last year, a senior government official said on Tuesday, urging the public to ration water consumption.

Performance of the current wet season is noticeably weaker compared to the previous years, Minister of Water and Irrigation Hazem El Nasser said in a statement to the press.

El Nasser expressed hope that the country would witness this season stronger depressions that would bring adequate rain, highlighting that water storage at the country’s dams last year was higher than current storage by 80 million cubic metres (mcm)

“The dams now hold 62.7mcm or 18.8 per cent of their total capacity of 333mcm. During this period last year, the dams stored 141.7mcm or 43.6 per cent,” El Nasser said.

The ministry’s figures showed that rainfall since the start of the wet season in October only achieved 16.4 per cent of the country’s long-term annual average of 8 billion cubic metres. Its data indicate that precipitation during this period last year totalled 45.6 per cent of the long-term annual average.

“In light of the current discouraging performance of the rainy season, the ministry calls on people to act responsibly and cooperate by reducing their consumption of water and also apply domestic rain harvesting techniques,” ministry spokesperson Omar Salameh told The Jordan Times.    

AMMAN — Over $1 billion was invested in the water sector in 2017 in projects to improve and increase water supply, link more households to the sewage network and expand the sector’s reliance on renewable energy, a senior government official said on Tuesday.

Over the past year, the Ministry of Water and Irrigation has completed the mega National Water Carrier project, which interlinks water projects across the Kingdom, Minister of Water and Irrigation Hazem El Nasser said in a press statement on the sector’s achievements and plans.

“The seven components of the National Water Carrier project were all completed in 2017 to provide the northern governorates with 300-500 cubic metres of water per hour and to increase this amount whenever the need arises…” El Nasser said in the statement.

The strategic project seeks to connect water projects in the south of the Kingdom to projects in the central and northern regions, in order to better supply water-distressed areas, especially in the north, via an expansive network of 600 kilometres of pipelines, ministry spokesperson Omar Salameh said on Tuesday.

“In 2017, the ministry has invested more than a billion US dollars in the water sector…” Salameh told The Jordan Times over the phone.

The national carrier is one of the 10 projects listed under the ministry’s water supply strategy for the northern governorates, launched in December 2015, according to the ministry, which said that the strategy entails implementing projects worth $308 million to provide Irbid, Jerash, Ajloun and Mafraq governorates with freshwater, in addition to renovating water networks in Irbid, Jerash and Ajloun.

Meanwhile, the ministry has completed some 80 per cent of a project to improve water supply in the Northern Badia by improving the supply systems of Al Akeb wells, according to the ministry.

“Work on the project’s three phases has been completed over the past year, while the fourth and the fifth phases are expected to be completed in 2018,” El Nasser said.

Regarding the ongoing strategic project of the Amman-Shidiyeh-Hassa Water Conveyance Project, the ministry said that work has started on the project.

The Amman-Shidiyeh-Hassa Water Conveyance Project aims at extracting water from deep wells located in the south, between the Shidiyeh, Hassa and Qatraneh areas, according to the ministry, which said that water will be sourced from 45 deep wells.

The project’s blueprints are completed, according to the minister, who said that the project’s 10 wells at depths reaching 1,500 metres are ready.

“Under the project’s first phase, a total of 20 million cubic metres of water will be pumped annually. The amount is set to increase to 50 million cubic metres of water in the second phase,” the minister said in the statement.

On its national campaign to protect water resources and end water theft and violations on the water network, the ministry announced that it has removed 35,216 violatiosn on water networks and resources since the campaign started in 2013.

In its endeavour to preserve ground water from further depletion, the ministry has also sealed 998 illegal wells, seized and confiscated 58 drilling rigs used for the illegal drilling of wells and ending 15,125 violations on the 110-kilometre-long King Abdullah Canal, according to the ministry.

For this year, the minister said that major projects will be announced and other ongoing programmes will be completed, underscoring that work on eight new major dams has commenced.

“Implementation of eight new major dams and 26 ponds has commenced,” the minister said.

Salameh indicated that by the start of 2017, a total of 12 major dams were storing rainwaer in different parts of the country with the capacity of 333mcm, noting that new dams in Karak and Kufranja started storing water last year.

He noted that the ministry is working to implement and secure funding for the new eight dams which are the Wadat, Feidan, Rahmah, Waleh Dam expansion, Zarqa-Maeen, Ibn Hamad, Lajoun, Wadi Assal.

In the statement, El Nasser said that Jordan high ranking internationally in terms of water harvesting and water storage, noting that the kindom has 12 major dams, over 165 ponds and 25 sand dams.

AMMAN — Her Majesty Queen Rania on Sunday congratulated Jordanians on the occasion of the New Year through Twitter. "Happy New Year to you and your loved ones," the Queen tweeted.

On Tuesday, Her Majesty tweeted: "As we begin 2018, best wishes from my family [in addition to Iman who is away at college] to yours."

AMMAN — Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Lt. Gen. Mahmoud Freihat on Monday received Chief of the Defence Staff of the French Army Gen. Francois Lecointre and an accompanying delegation, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Freihat and Lecointre discussed the latest regional and international developments and ways of cooperation and coordination to best serve the interest of both armies.

Commander of the Jordanian Royal Air Force, head of the Strategic Planning and Defence Resources and the French military attaché in Amman attended the meeting. 

AMMAN — A military source at the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army (JAF) said the Northern Military Zone, in coordination with the Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) and the Military Security Department on Monday foiled an alleged drug smuggling attempt from Syria to Jordan, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The military source added that seven people were trying to cross the border to Jordan where the rules of engagement were applied, resulting in the retreat of all suspects into Syria.

After searching the area, 226,000 Tramadol pills, 40 blocks of heroin and 40 palm-sized sheets of hashish were seized and transferred to the concerned authorities.

AMMAN — Preventive Security Department’s personnel on Monday carried out several raids and arrested suspects for the possession of unlicensed firearms, a security source said on Tuesday.

The raids, carried out after receiving tip-offs, resulted in the seizure of 20 weapons and the arrest of suspected owners, the source told the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

In one of the cases, the personnel arrested two suspects in Ruseifa and seized eight guns, while another raid in Ein Al Basha resulted in the arrest of a man in possession of several automatic guns. Investigation was still ongoing, according to Petra. 

AMMAN () — His Majesty King Abdullah on Monday received a phone call from Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Sheikh Mohammed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, in which they exchanged greetings on the occasion of the New Year, according to a Royal Court statement. 

His Majesty stressed on the “deep-rooted and historic relations” between the UAE and Jordan, and his keenness on enhancing cooperation during 2018, serving the interests of both countries and people, the statement said.

Last month, Emirati Ambassador to Jordan Matar Shamsi noted in remarks to the press that the volume of the UAE’s investments in the Kingdom amounts to more than $12 billion and securing thousands of jobs for Jordanians. 

He added that Jordan was the first country to recognise and establish diplomatic ties with the Emirati union in 1971, remarking that diplomatic representation at the level of ambassador was in place one day after the union was declared. 

The UAE-Jordanian Joint Committee held its third meeting at the end of October 2017, during which 12 agreements and memoranda of understanding were signed. 

AMMAN — The Lower House on Sunday voted in favour of the state budget and budgets of independent government units draft law in a session that witnessed the absence of more than 30 MPs, who boycotted the deliberations, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

Among the 99 legislators present (out of 130) in the evening session, 58 lawmakers voted yea. The Islamist Islah bloc (14 seats), and other deputies, had announced boycotting the debate in protest to lifting subsidies off essential commodities that have been a fixture in the national economy over decades, including bread.  

In an unprecedented occurrence, the House debated and voted over the bill in one day, a development seen by officials as a leap in the reforms to the way the Chamber operates, while critics, including social media activists, slammed the House for completing the task without enough deliberation (see story on page 3). 

The 2018 draft state budget includes, for the first time, a social safety network/cash subsidy with a value of JD177 million to make up for rising cost of living brought about by lifting subsidies.  

The cash subsidy will be directed to each member of the army, security and civil service whose salary is below JD1,500, the government and the deputies agreed, as suggested by the House’s financial committee, which studied the budget and made a set of recommendations. 

Other measures the government has agreed to include cancelling two conditions set originally for individuals to be eligible to receive the cash support, namely, the family should not own two cars or more and/or real estate worth JD300,000 and more.  

Otherwise, all Jordanian families whose total annual income does not exceed JD12,000 and individuals whose annual income is not more than JD6,000 will be eligible to receive the cash subsidy, estimated for each individual at around JD32 annually. 

The corrective measures to be implemented by the government, including public expenditure control, will increase revenues by JD450 million in 2018, according to the budget statement. 

The Finance Ministry is expected to activate a website it has already designed to allow would-be beneficiaries to post their information, with 2016 used as a base year for income. 

Civil and military employees and pensioners, retirees served by the Social Security Corporation and beneficiaries of the National Aid Fund will have the subsidy added to their monthly salaries, while other beneficiaries will receive quarterly or biannual payments, including divorced women who receive alimonies. 

The government also agreed to exempt households that consume less than 300kw/h a month from any price hikes that apply when the oil barrel’s price exceeds $55.

The Cabinet had already decided to include the 60-69 age category under the free medical care umbrella, among other measures to ease the impact of the new system on low-income citizens. 

Following the endorsement, Prime Minister Hani Mulki thanked lawmakers for their vote and commended the new approach to the deliberations, as only 31 deputies took the podium, of whom six spoke on behalf of their blocs. House Speaker Atef Tarawneh said that around 110 deputies were represented in the speeches delivered. 

Mulki told deputies that off-budget expenditure is blamed for the accumulating dues on the state, vowing to bring an end to such a behaviour. He said that without the debt service, the budget would have a JD400 million surplus. 

Under the budget law submitted to the Parliament, domestic revenues stand at JD8.496 billion, compared with JD7.715 billion of reestimated revenues in 2017, while current expenditures are estimated at JD7.886 billion and capital expenditures at JD1.153 billion in 2018.

The after-grants deficit in 2018’s budget is expected to sway around JD543 million in 2018, dropping by JD209 million in the reestimated value in the 2017 budget.

As for government units, revenues are estimated at JD1.664 billion and expenditures at JD1.812 billion with a deficit of JD148 million.

 The combined deficit of the central government and government units will drop this year to JD831 million, down from JD1.035 billion in 2017.

AMMAN — The government's fuel pricing committee on Sunday decided to reduce the price of kerosene by JD0.030 and increase the price of unleaded 90-octane gasoline to JD0.730 per litre, up from JD0.720.

The committee decided that unleaded 95-octane gasoline will be sold at JD0.955 per litre, up from JD0.945 and diesel to be sold at JD0.550 up from JD0.450 during January.

The committee noted that the price of gas cylinders will remain unchanged at JD7, despite a real-term increase to JD9.25.

Prices of oil derivatives in the local market are calculated based on international prices, with the addition of other costs such as shipment, handling and taxes.

The committee said that it referred to international oil prices, which showed that the cost of a barrel of crude Brent oil went up to $64.19 in December compared to $62.59 in November, Petra reported.

All derivatives are subject to a JD0.006 stamp fee, in addition to other fixed fees related to transport, storage and insurance.    

AMMAN — Social media users in Jordan on Thursday slammed the quick endorsement of the 2018 state budget in one day, expecting 2018 to be a tough year with the endorsed decisions that included ending bread subsidies.

On Twitter and Facebook, users said voting on the state budget and endorsing it in a single day was "unacceptable", noting with the increase in taxes and ending bread subsidies 2018 was expected to be a tough year.

"With the endorsement of the 2018 state budget on the eve of the new year, it is clear that 2018 is not going to be an easy year," Mohammad Basel‏ (MohammedBasel1) tweeted Thursday.

Musab Al Shawabkeh‏ (@shawabka_musab) tweeted Thursday, saying the voting and endorsement of the state budget in a single day was a "silly performance".

Criticising the lawmakers, Khaled Fanatsa said: "What happened at the Lower House was against values that the lawmakers claimed to be defending. They did not honour their commitments to the people."

Another twitter user (@ad_47ad) said with the lifting of bread subsidies the start of 2018 is a difficult one.

"In one session only, the lawmakers completed deliberating and endorsing the state budget," Suheila Ajarmeh (@Suhailaalajarmah) tweeted.

Omar Dahamsheh (@Omar_Dhamsha) agreed.

"This seems to be the first time in history that the budget is endorsed in such a quick time, and many lawmakers were absent from attending the session," he tweeted.

On his Facebook account, Omar Dahamsheh said the lawmakers endorsed the budget on the occasion of the New Year, criticising the swift endorsement of the budget.

"It is clear how 2018 will be from its beginning with this endorsement of the state budget and the new taxes and increase in bread prices," Jazza (@Madallh_skare) tweeted Thursday.

Ayat Alhajjaj (@Ayat_Alhajjaj) echoed similar remarks.

"Can you imagine that the state budget of a country whose economic conditions are suffering is deliberated and endorsed by 58 lawmakers out of 99 who attended and is endorsed in such a quick manner?" Alhajjaj twitted.

Muhammad F Khamaiseh‏ (@Mohdkhamaiseh) said in a tweet Thursday that the Lower House was keen on ending 2017 with an achievement.

"The Lower House was keen on realising an achievement and that is why it adopted the state budget in the fastest time ever," he tweeted.