His Majesty King Abdullah on Tuesday reiterated that there are no worries about the future of Jordan, contrary to what sceptics claim.

The King made the remarks at a meeting on Tuesday with local community leaders and officials from Ramtha after he inaugurated educational, medical and other projects in the northern district.

King Abdullah voiced his satisfaction with the progress made in the government's programmes for the years 2008-2009, underscoring the need for completing the master plan for the country's areas, noting that the scheme provides guidelines for implementing development plans.

At the meeting, King Abdullah emphasised the importance of dealing with the "Decent Housing for Decent Living" initiative in complete transparency away from wasta (favouritism). Work on the first phase of the scheme, which entails the creation of some 120,000 houses, will start in Ramtha and several other areas during the coming months.

Responding to critics' accusations of lack of seriousness on the part of the government in implementing the housing initiative, Prime Minister Nader Dahabi said the plan is going according to schedule and some 800 housing units will be created in Ramtha within seven to nine months.

"I am proud of the achievements that were realised over the past stage," said the King, noting that what has been achieved in Ramtha is just the beginning of other projects on the drawing boards, especially in the fields of education and infrastructure.

King Abdullah added: "We will work on solving problems schools face and address other issues raised by citizens."

During his visit to Ramtha, the King inaugurated the new building of the Ramtha Public Hospital, which he ordered to be maintained and renovated during a visit to the town, some 80 kilometres northeast of Amman, in August last year.

The new five-storey hospital, which was built over 12,000 square metres compared to the previous 1,500-square-metre facility, includes 110 beds, X-ray units, emergency rooms, outpatient clinics, labs, and maternity, paediatric and postnatal wards. It offers medical services in specialties that were missing previously, Director Jamal Sharman said yesterday.

"It is not only that the new hospital offers new and better medical services, especially that it is equipped with state-of-the-art medical equipment, but it will also help cope with the large number of cases the hospital handles daily. The old hospital was so overcrowded, which affected the quality of medical services offered," Sharman said.

Some 500 people report to the hospital daily, which serves a population of some 150,000. The total cost of renovations and expansion of the facility stood at JD11 million, of which JD7 million was contributed by the Royal Court, while the rest was provided by the treasury.

The old hospital was shabby and about to collapse and contained 5 per cent of the hospital's needs of medical equipment, while the equipment used then was outdated and mostly out of order.

Citizens also welcomed the changes.

"The hospital is spacious now; at least we do not wait in the corridors like before," Um Ali, a resident, said.

Also on Teasday, King Abdullah inaugurated the Zeid Ben Khattab Basic School for Boys, which was built upon a Royal makruma. Featuring a computer and science lab, a library, a warehouse, 18 classrooms, and rooms for teachers, administration and guards, the modern school offers a good environment for its 310 students, officials said.

The King also unveiled the curtain of the headquarters of Ramtha and Ittihad Al Ramtha sports clubs.