Prime minister calls governorates to prepare budget

Prime Minster Hani Mulki on Tuesday said that he directed budget authorities to immediately start preparation of the public budget 2018, to take into account the budgets of governorate councils that will be elected in August, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.
During a meeting at the Finance Ministry to discuss the macroeconomic indicators in the first half of the year, Mulki said that, after the local elections, the General Budget Department is expected to embark on discussions with local councils over their respective budgets, in light of the allocations determined by the Finance Ministry.
Citing Finance Ministry data for the first half of the year, the premier highlighted progress in the economic correction programme. 
As part of a decentralisation strategy aimed at involving the public in the Kingdom’s districts in decision-making, governorate councils will have the authority to set developmental priorities in each governorate and manage their budgets, decided by the central government, in line with these priorities.  
Allocations have to be decided according to transparent mechanisms and in a way that enables the councils to aptly serve developmental goals in their areas of jurisdiction, said Mulki.
He stressed that the various Finance Ministry departments should have plans in place to adjust their operations with the decentralisation era and their officials should be authorised to deal with local councils with flexibility.
The premier called for holding another meeting after three months to assess the state’s financial performance and ensure commitment to plans and programmes. Mulki expressed appreciation for the ministry’s efforts in rationalising spending and increasing revenues, reflecting economic stability and the chances of improvement.