The Senate on Wednesday unanimously approved the draft 2020 state budget law and the budgets of independent public institutions, during a session Wednesday chaired by President Faisal Fayez.

Senator Issa Murad read the Finance and Economic Committee's decision and its recommendations during the session.

The committee called on the government to commit to not issuing budget appendices to avoid disbursement of amounts exceeding the allocated, as this led to the accumulation of arrears in the past.

It also called on looking into the possibility of issuing budget appendices in the appropriate time with the full amount of arrears, underlining the importance of understanding their impact on public debt.

The Senate recommended to the government and public institutions to make optimal use of the national payment ecosystem by relying on the available electronic payment systems, which would have a major impact on promoting the transition to an integrated digital economy.

The recommendations also included granting incentives to attract institutional investment (mutual funds) as part of the Jordanian capital market's tools through the Amman Stock Exchange, as well as unifying governance rules between various regulatory bodies if possible, and expediting the process of resolving the standing issues of troubled companies listed at the Amman Stock Exchange, and accelerating the implementation of e-disclosure.

The recommendations stressed that the Ministry of Justice's efforts to develop the judiciary must be accompanied by endeavors to further enhance the legal capabilities of the Legislation Bureau and various ministries and government institutions, in addition to activating the brokerage law which would further facilitate litigation, and wrapping up procedures for the electronic tracking bracelets.

For charities, the committee called for amending the law to correct licensing rationale, and expedite the approval of a strategy for waste management, and pay the fuel revenues to municipalities monthly, along with studying the possibility of merging the governorate development fund into the Cities and Villages Development Bank.

The recommendations for the "Jordan Export House" included supporting the Department of Statistics and providing it with the necessary technical cadres and establishing a culture of sound statistical base to enable policymakers to take appropriate decisions on major economic variables.

With regard to the Culture Ministry, the committee underlined the importance of increasing its resources to finance various activities in cooperation with the private sector if possible.

The committee's report included recommendations to expedite the completion the Desert Highway, which only 70 percent of which has been finished, and is expected to be fully operating by mid-2020.

It called for finding the most efficient frameworks to boost spending efficiency on projects in the governorates.

The recommendations also called on the Ministry of Energy to address the National Electric Power company's debts and reach a tariff that addresses consumer requirements and the national economy within a clear timetable.

Also, it called for providing incentives for individuals to join licensed transport companies, and follow-up with international institutions to provide financing for capital spending for the Amman Civil Airport and licensing it, as well as following up on the establishment of an early warning system for the Kingdom and provide a radar for the southern region.