Jordan gets new chiefs for central bank, seurities commission

Jan 11, 2012, 14:43 GMT

Amman - A shake-up of top finance posts in Jordan's government was viewed Wednesday as an attempt by Prime Minister Awan Khasawneh to come to grips with the country's economic ailments.

According to an official statement, the cabinet appointed Ziad Fariz as the new governor of the Central Bank of Jordan. He succeeds Mohammed Shahin, who only took the job in October after a previous government forced his predecessor, Fares Sharaf, to step aside amid criticism of his economic and social policies.

The cabinet also tapped Mohammad Tash as new president of the Jordan Securities Commission. He replaces Bassam Saket, who has held the post since the late 1990s.

Saket has been accused by brokerage and investment fund executives of failure to adopt measures that would perk up the ailing Amman Stock Market, where the benchmark has recently dropped to its lowest level in seven years.

King Abdullah II has called for economic reforms to move in line with political reforms, saying the country needs to focus on lessening poverty, stemming unemployment and controlling the rising public budget deficit.