Jordan Times
Tuesday, July 6, 2004
King backs
decentralisation plan
By Dalya Dajani
AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Monday said
he supported an Interior Ministry plan to achieve administrative
decentralisation in governorates.
During a visit to the ministry, King Abdullah urged officials to prepare
plan-related studies and legislation for official approval.
Briefed by Interior Minister Samir Habashneh and other officials on prevailing
challenges hampering efficient public administration, the King said an effective
decentralisation track to boost administrative and technical capacities is a
must.
Habashneh said executive councils headed by governors lack actual powers and
their members are merely officials strongly bound to departments in Amman.
“The current situation illustrates a reality that does not fall in line with the
directives that have been set by Your Majesty to ensure swift implementation of
development projects across the country,” Habashneh said.
The minister added that authoritative powers given by King Abdullah to governors
two years ago had failed to flourish.
Habashneh said such loopholes resulted in “humble” results in the rate of
achieving development projects.
Seeking to eliminate all-too-common bureaucratic obstacles, King had awarded
each of the Kingdom's 12 governors greater authoritative powers to supervise the
implementation of Socio-Economic Transformation Plan projects in their
respective governorates. The step, which gave ministers a smaller role in the
direct supervision of such projects, was designed to cut red tape and speed-up
progress on a range of projects aimed at improving the lives of Jordanians.
According to Habashneh, an effective decentralisation plan that clearly defines
the roles and functions of officials and supported by the proper legislation was
necessary to ensure the aspired results.
Under the proposed decentralisation plan, presented to the King, the executive
council, a governorate council and a central authority would work in a
better-coordinated manner to ensure swift implementation of the Monarch's
directives.
The King yesterday commended ministry officials for their efforts to see through
development in the Kingdom.
“Aside from maintaining national security, the ministry played an important role
in supporting development in the governorates and I would like to see it expand
on this role,” said the King.
Based on the proposed plan, the executive council will ensure that development
projects are in line with government plans to promote the country's social and
economic drive. The council would also draw up and endorse budgets for
governorates, prioritise local communities' needs and submit them to the
governorates' council and implement projects following endorsement.
The governorate council would be responsible for endorsing or amending the
governorate's priorities put forward by the executive council. The council would
also endorse the budget put forward by the executive council, make relevant
amendments to proposed plans and provide necessary funds to carry out projects.
The ministries of interior, finance and planning would be responsible for
drawing up needed legislation to enhance the country's development track,
carrying out strategic planning, monitoring and evaluation, in addition to
providing needed funds for projects and endorsing governorate budgets.
Habashneh said future plans include drawing up the needed legislation that would
give governors a greater role in implementing development projects. Ministry
officials attending the meeting updated the King on the recent achievements of
their respective departments under its recent restructuring process.