Governor Al Wazir Meets with Palestinian Lawmakers

Ramallah, July 10, 2008: The Governor of the Palestine Monetary Authority Dr. Jihad Al Wazir met with 25 members of the Palestine Legislative Council ( the Palestinian Parliament) at The Legislative Council Chambers in Ramallah. The PLC members who attended the meeting included members of the economic and budget committee as well as members of all parliamentary blocks except for the members of the Hamas block who were abducted by Israel in June 2006[1]. In the meeting which lasted for 2 hours, Governor Al Wazir gave an overview of the global and regional economic situation following the subprime crisis in the US and the inflationary impact of the US dollar exchange rate decline and associated global rise in oil and commodity prices on the Palestinian economy. Dr. Al Wazir noted that Inflationary pressures have added to the woes of the Palestinian economy which continues to suffer economic stresses as a result of Israeli closures and restrictions on the movements of people, goods, and services in the West Bank and Gaza. Governor Al Wazir stated that real GDP growth in 2007 was zero and that in spite of more than $900 million of donor aid in the first half of 2008, the IMF GDP growth projections of 3.5% GDP for 2008 will have to be revised downward. He also discussed some of the challenges facing the PMA particularly the difficulties faced due of the split between the West Bank and Gaza as well as the Israeli restrictions of currency transfers to Gaza strip. He also informed the legislators of the recent achievements of the PMA and its successful launch the National Credit Bureau and the progress in the vendor negotiations for the implementation of the National Payment system (RTGS) project.