DUBAI – Gulf Arab states are looking at ways to help Jordan's ailing economy after a government decision to cut fuel subsidies sent energy prices soaring and led to street protests. Jordan has struggled to reduce its budget deficit and secure a $2 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). It has also suffered gas disruptions from regular supplier Egypt following several sabotage attacks on a pipeline since last year's Egyptian uprising. UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah Bin Zayed Al-Nahayan said Jordan was facing an economic deficit due to its dependence on importing heavy fuel. “We, in the UAE and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), are studying ways to close or minimize this deficit,” the state news agency WAM quoted Sheikh Abdullah as telling a news conference in Abu Dhabi with Jordan's Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh. Talks to come up with a solution to Jordan's funding gap could take some time, he said. The rising energy bill after the disruption of cheap gas supplies from Egypt and a steep drop in foreign grants have pushed the aid-dependent kingdom to the brink of economic crisis. Its budget deficit is now $3 billion, or 11 percent of GDP. “The cut in the Egyptian gas to Jordan for two years is the main reason for these situations which made us depend on heavy fuel which cost us more than $4 billion,” Judeh said. The bombing of the pipeline bringing Egyptian gas has forced Jordan to switch to costlier fuels for power generation. Last December, Gulf Arab countries decided at a summit in Riyadh to set up a five-year, $5 billion fund to help development projects in aspiring GCC members Morocco and Jordan. – Reuters
