Gov’t representatives on company boards to receive JD300-500 monthly allowances

AMMAN — The Cabinet on Sunday instructed governmental institutions and companies that are fully or partially owned by the state to deposit allowances for government representatives on their boards in a special account that belongs to the Finance Ministry.

The representatives will receive equal monthly compensations even if they are members on more than one board, while the surplus money will be sent to the Treasury, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

The Council of Ministers approved disbursing JD300-500 in monthly compensations to government representatives on company boards.

Also during Sunday’s meeting, the Cabinet approved a by-law amending the income tax by-law in the Aqaba Special Economic Zone for 2017.

The measure came to improve living conditions in the zone and hone the skills of its labour force by attracting qualitative services investments and encouraging international legal, financial and technical companies to present their services by exempting them from the income tax if 60 per cent of their services are provided in Aqaba, 330km south of Amman.

The council also approved the Jordan Valley Authority’s decision to lease land plots to residents and civil societies in the Southern Jordan Valley.

In another decision, the government approved the by-law of parking service companies (valets) for 2017. 

The by-law stipulates that owners and workers have to be Jordanians. It also requires the installation of surveillance cameras at parking lots and imposing a uniform for workers.

Also on Sunday, the Cabinet decided to transfer the ownership of the Jordan Cooperative Corporation’s immovable assets, worth JD17.5 million, to the Treasury.

Moreover, the government approved the mandating reasons for the by-law of the King Abdullah II Centre for Nanotechnology and the draft by-law of the National Centre for Research and Development.

In a different field, the Council of Ministers approved the mandating reasons for a draft by-law amending the by-law of Sharia Judicial Institute to be sent to Lower House Legal Committee for discussion.

The Cabinet also approved the Tourism Ministry’s project to establish a public park in the Ibbin-Ibillin region in Ajloun Governorate, some 70km northwest of Amman, on a 200-dunum plot, provided that the project protects forest trees and the land is owned by the Treasury.

In addition, the council approved the mandating reasons for a by-law amending the by-law of the Military Credit Fund.

Also during the meeting, the Council of Ministers approved employing Ahed Wahadneh as the secretary general of the Higher Education Ministry and Abeer Al Bawab as the director general of the Scientific Research Fund.