Lower House finance committee starts review of draft budget law

AMMAN — The Lower House Finance Committee convened on Tuesday to discuss the 2025 draft budget law, after it received from the Lower House.

Director General of the General Budget Department Majdi Shuraiqi and Deputy Director General Ayman Abu Alrub attended the committee's session, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra. 

Committee Chairman Nimer Sleihat highlighted plans to request detailed breakdowns of the budget, including allocations for capital expenditures in governorates and funding for Economic Modernisation Vision projects in 2024 and projections for 2025.

Shuraiqi presented an overview of the draft budget, covering the ministries and the government units allocations, economic growth rates, gross domestic product, deficit figures, and the primary objectives of the draft budget.

During the session, MPs Nasser Nawasrah, Dima Tahboub, Awni Zoubi, Mohammad Kataw, Randa Khzouz, Firas Qublan, Iman Abbasi, Mohammad Bani Mulhim, and Nour Abu Ghosh engaged in the discussions and posed various questions about the draft.

Shuraiqi addressed all inquiries raised by the MPs, providing clarifications on the draft budget's components and objectives. 

The committee's recommendations will be submitted to the Lower House for further deliberation.

The government on Sunday presented the 2025 draft budget bill and fiscal plans to the Lower House.

The draft budget estimates expenditures in 2025 at around JD11.042 billion, reflecting an increase of JD504 million, or 4.8 per cent, compared with the revised 2024 level.

The capital expenditures for 2025 are estimated at around JD1.469 billion, a rise of JD209 million or 16.5 per cent over the revised 2024 level.

The draft budget also projects the economy at a real GDP rate of 2.5 per cent in 2025, increasing to 3 per cent in 2026 and 2027. 

Nominal GDP is expected to grow by 4.9 per cent in 2025 and 5.6 per cent in 2026 and 2027.