The Syrian Arab republic Ministry of finance The Minister’s Word
The Ministry of Finance occupies a very significant position in terms of the multi-faceted roles it plays. The MOF missions, responsibilities and functions have always been of great importance for different plans, programs and policies as well as for issues, legislation and decisions put forward by other authorities. The MOF attitudes range between reservation and support. These attitudes they all come as a result of the strategic position of this ministry, which is protecting and increasing the financial resources along with controlling the use and spending of these resources according to the state’s orientation, in order to control and rationalize the spending. Any imbalance between the two side of the equation (income & expenditure) will lead to disorder in the economic and living standards in general. Today, after restructuring some of the ministries and sectors, after the current government had taken office in September 2003, the MOF roles are acquiring greater significance and scope. Government and private banks as well as the Syrian Insurance Establishment have all been linked directly to the Minister of Finance, which means that the Ministry has become in charge of the following sectors: - Money and taxes sector. - Banks and insurance sector. - Customs sector. - The Insurance & Pension Establishment. These sectors are of great importance to any economy or society; they constitute the cornerstones of any development and economic reform programme. No reform process can be envisaged without ensuring the development and efficiency of these sectors. Building on this, the Ministry is doing its best to realise the financial and banking reform program as a significant part of the government economic reform program. MOF reform efforts are focused on: - administrative reform in terms of filling vacancies, rehabilitating and training the staff in different MOF bodies. - Modernizing and developing the financial, banking and customs legislations. Many new regulations have already been issued; others are either waiting to be issued or still under consideration. - Introducing IT equipment and practices into different MOF bodies; great progress has already been achieve in automating the Ministry’s work, and these activities are to be complemented during 2004-2005. - Reforming financial, taxation, banking and insurance policies, in order to make MOF bodies more qualified, dynamic, and capable of going along with the economic and social changes Syria is witnessing these days. Finally speaking, we’re not claiming to have achieved everything our economy and society need. We haven’t achieved what we ourselves aspire, but still we think that we’re on the right way to doing that. What we’re sure of is that we’re doing our best in this field. We also believe that the most important thing is the outcome and concrete achievements. Our duty towards our people and society is to do every possible effort, to be worth the responsibility assigned to us by our people and by President Bashar al-Assad. Damascus / /2004 Minister of finance Dr Muhammad al-Hussein
