Prime minister directs ministries to reduce operating costs by 15%

AMMAN — A circular issued by Prime Minister Jafar Hassan for the preparation of the 2027 draft General Budget Law directs all ministries, departments and government units to reduce operational expenditures by 15 per cent next year.

Under the circular, seen by Al Mamlaka TV, government entities are required to prepare detailed budgets for 2027–2029 and submit them to the General Budget Department by mid-July, along with the 2027 draft Civil Service Formation Bylaw.

The directives also require ministries and public institutions to account for a JD30 monthly salary increase for public servants and military employees and retirees whose monthly salaries or pensions are below JD600 when preparing current expenditure estimates for 2027–2029.

Hassan stressed the need to adhere to preliminary budget ceilings, stipulating that they should not be exceeded unless justified by the public interest.

Any requests for additional allocations must be accompanied by explanations detailing variances from the 2026 budget, in line with government efforts to rationalise public spending.

Priority will be given to ongoing capital projects, projects under implementation, initiatives linked to the Economic Modernisation Vision and the Public Sector Modernisation Roadmap, as well as commitments made by the Cabinet during its field visits to governorates, the circular said.

The directives also highlight a greater emphasis on integrating green economy and climate-change priorities into budget planning, taking into account Jordan’s commitments to reducing carbon emissions and strengthening climate adaptation measures.

Government bodies were also urged to incorporate requirements related to digital transformation, public-service automation and cybersecurity enhancement into their budget plans.

The prime minister also instructed ministries and public units to align programmes and projects with national priorities, strategic objectives and performance indicators for the 2027–2029 period, reinforcing a results-based budgeting approach that links public spending to development and service outcomes.

Government entities were also asked to prepare summaries of their 2027 staffing tables, detailing vacant, new and redundant positions while adhering to public-sector job classification and coding standards.