Khaberni - The Parliamentary Finance Committee, during a meeting held on Wednesday under the chairmanship of MP Nimer Al-Sulihat, approved the draft law ratifying the loan agreement signed between Jordan and Italy.
Al-Sulihat, in the presence of the Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Zaina Toukan, said that the committee discussed the terms of the agreement, which stipulates that the Italian side provides an unconditional concessional loan of 50 million euros, aimed at supporting one of the general budget projects, specifically directed towards financing the implementation of the digital transformation program in the health sector.
He indicated that the loan comes within the framework of bilateral partnership and cooperation between the two countries, appreciating the Italian government's support for Jordan in various fields, which contributes to achieving national priorities within the vision of economic modernization and the public sector development roadmap.
He confirmed that the committee would follow the stages of the agreement according to constitutional frameworks, in a way that achieves its goals and serves the public interest, emphasizing that the implementation stages of the agreement program are subject to the control of the Audit Bureau.
In their turn, the MPs Suleiman Al-Kharabsheh, Ibrahim Al-Tarawneh, Nasser Al-Nawasrah, Islam Al-Azzam, Randa Al-Khuzouz, Najmah Al-Hawawshah, Ibrahim Al-Jbour, and Mohammad Al-Bastanji raised a number of inquiries and remarks related to the terms of the agreement, interest rates, repayment periods, and implementation mechanisms, affirming the importance of transparency and ensuring the financing is directed towards clear developmental priorities.
For her part, Toukan clarified that under the agreement, Jordan commits to providing the necessary financial resources to implement the program according to what is stipulated in the special annex of the agreement, ensuring the achievement of the desired objectives from this joint cooperation, and in line with national priorities, indicating that the value of the agreement is distributed with 60% as a grant, while the remaining percentage constitutes a loan with a minor interest rate of 0.5%, and a repayment period of up to 20 years.
