Al Mulki comments on refugees and bread subsidies

Jordan

Published: 2017-12-21 14:55

Last Updated: 2024-03-29 02:00


Hani Al Mulki
Hani Al Mulki

Hani Al-Mulki, Jordan's Prime Minister, said in a statement that there is not one country in the world left providing bread subsidies to their citizens, mentioning that refugees and immigrant workers, who make up a third of the population in Jordan, are benefiting from the citizens' pockets.

"If the bread subsidy is 140 million JOD, that means the annual withdrawal from the Central Bank of Jordan is about 200 million JOD just for wheat," Al-Mulki added during a meeting of the Parliamentary Finance Committee with the Government on Thursday to discuss the general budget.

The Minister explained it would be better to give subsidies to the citizens directly, and that they increased the budget from 140 million JOD to 170 million, indicating that direct subsidies will not waste money.

Al-Mulki also pointed out that he will apply the Financial Committee's proposed plan and implement it without modifying it.

The Prime Minister mentioned the troubled times Jordan is currently going through and wants our country to be strong. He also talked about the tough decisions the government makes, but that the citizen has to deal with such decisions in order to help out the country.

Earlier this month, the government increased electricity and fuel prices.