Jordan Times
Friday, August 20, 2004
PM urges municipalities to
play a more effective role
AMMAN (JT) — Prime Minister Faisal Fayez on Thursday opened the General
Municipal Conference which aims at addressing problems facing the country's 99
municipalities.
In an address at the opening session, the premier said the government wants to
see municipalities playing a more effective role in the local development
process and not just offering services to citizens, which currently include
paving new roads, lighting streets and collecting garbage.
“Municipalities should play an effective role in the ongoing comprehensive
social, economic and cultural development process,” the premier said.
Fayez also urged municipal authorities to draw up programmes for training
municipal employees and give due attention to attracting investments.
Ministry of Municipal Affairs Secretary General Basem Khatib told The Jordan
Times that the major purpose of holding the conference is to discuss ways to
help municipalities pay for their expenses out of their own revenues and to
start reducing their reliance on the government.
One way to achieve such a goal, he said, is through creating a real partnership
between municipalities and the private sector.
“We need municipalities and the private sector to work together and establish
joint projects. This will ultimately result in developing the municipal areas in
the country,” said Khatib.
Another aim of the conference, he said, is to start discussions on future
municipal projects and their budgets for next year.
While the municipalities' budget stands at JD104 million in 2004, it is expected
to reach around JD110 million next year.
Conference participants, including mayors, discussed ways to reduce the
municipalities' debt, which currently stands at JD62 million. Three years ago
the debt totalled JD68 million, according to Khatib.
The government recently settled debts of around 39 municipalities and provided
them with additional funds to improve the quality of services offered to local
communities.
Fayez said the government is currently reassessing the three-year-old plan of
merging municipalities.
In 2001, the government adopted a plan to overhaul the financially and
administratively troubled-municipal sector by merging the country's 328
municipalities into the present total of 99, raising their financial allocations
and setting up programmes to rehabilitate their 21,000 staff.
The government then dissolved the elected municipal councils and appointed
temporary committees to run the municipalities until elections were held in July
2003.
Minister of Political Affairs Mohammad Daoudiyeh, Minister of Higher Education
and Scientific Research Issam Zabalawi and Amman Mayor Nidal Hadid also attended
the conference.