His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday directed the government to expedite measures to ease the impact of the price surge on citizens.
His Majesty also asked the Cabinet to proceed without delay with the National Housing Strategy and to expand the beneficiaries' base of a nationwide health insurance system.
Chairing a meeting attended by Prime Minister Nader Dahabi, concerned Cabinet members and senior officials, King Abdullah said citizens should feel the positive impact of the measures to be taken.
The King also directed officials in charge of a programme run by the Jordan Armed Forces to train and recruit civilians to absorb additional 10,000 job seekers in the plan's current stage, under which 5,000 young men are receiving training.
Under the project, which was launched in July 2007 as a Royal initiative aimed to cut down on unemployment, the trainees will be taking the thousands of jobs created in the booming construction sector.
As part of the project, young people are to be trained in a variety of skills demanded in the sector, which, according to experts, generates some 150,000 jobs annually.
Under the King's directives, the total number of trainees over the programme's four-year span will be increased to 40,000, a 25 per cent increase over the figure in the original plan.
Beneficiaries from the project receive during training a variety of privileges, including a JD191 monthly salary, health insurance, social security, accommodation, transportation, food and clothing and a certificate.
The King was briefed by Labour Minister Bassem Salem and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff General Khaled Sarayreh on the project's progress.
His Majesty noted that graduates from the vocational training programme can benefit from the job opportunities created by the housing scheme, known as the “Decent Housing for a Decent Living” initiative.
Under the five-year plan launched by the King in late February, a total of 120,000 housing units are scheduled to be built for low- and limited-income citizens.
As part of the first phase of the nearly JD5 billion scheme, the construction of 20,500 units will begin this year and as of 2009, a total of 20,000 housing units will be constructed annually.
Dahabi, meanwhile, briefed the King on measures the government will take to face the surge in prices of commodities and monitor the markets to prevent manipulation.
Dahabi said the government will announce next week several measures it has already prepared to reduce the financial hardships shouldered by citizens, especially the limited- and low-income segment.
Dahabi also outlined the government's plans to spur economic growth.
Meanwhile, he said the government is taking steps to increase the number of beneficiaries from the Ministry of Health's services in a way that free medical treatment covers those whose monthly salaries are more than JD200. He also pledged to simplify procedures patients have to follow to obtain free treatment.
The Jordan Times