Gov’t highlights measures to ease economic burden

AMMAN —  The Joint Parliamentary Committee and Cabinet, in a statement issued on Wednesday, stressed the importance of national efforts aiming to overcome current challenges, and maintaining security and stability of homeland, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The committee was briefed on measures taken by the government on December 6 and its direct response to the demands of the Truck Owners Syndicate.

The government decided to increase shipping fees by JD1.5 per tonne of phosphate, potash and sulphur.

Freight fees were also increased to reach JD500 instead of JD448 for a weight of up to 25 tonnes per container transported through the Amman-Aqaba road.

The government also pledged to form a joint committee to regulate shipping, adopt a unified exchange office for containers, deal with the issues of drivers, approve the axle load and allow increases in loads. 

In regard to the operational age of the trucks, the committee was briefed on the efforts exerted by the government in cooperation with Saudi Arabia to extend the service life for transit cars and consider increasing the service life of trucks.

As for public transport, the committee was briefed on the government's response to the demands of bus and taxi unions, whose employers returned to work as usual.

The Cabinet said that the government provided more than double the amount of previous financial support since last June to prevent raising transport fares.

The government provided about JD6 million to support the sector, in addition to JD5 million granted in the past months.

The committee called on the government to fix the price of kerosene during winter, urging it to refrain from raising its prices despite global price increase.

In addition, the committee proposed reflecting any decline in global prices of fuel derivatives on the local prices of fuel derivatives.

Attendees extended appreciation to the decision of the Association of Banks in Jordan to postpone debt instalments for people due in December.

The Cabinet affirmed the government's keenness to subsidise several commodities, allocating JD277 million of subsidies, raise the number of students benefiting from the Underprivileged Student Fund, whose effects will be reflected on thousands of Jordanian families, increase support to the National Aid Fund, and double the number of families benefiting from the winter aid programme. 

In addition, an amount of JD2.6 million will be distributed as a fuel allowance to the most underprivileged  families by the end of this month.

The committee requested to extend a number of defence orders issued during the spread of the coronavirus pandemic.