Sana'a: The Acting Prime Minister, Judge Mohammed Miftah, was briefed during his visit on Sunday to the Ministry of Finance on the ministry's overall performance, the level of implementation of its annual plan and urgent tasks, as well as the progress of integration, networking, and automation processes.
According to Yemen News Agency, during the visit, Judge Miftah met with Minister of Finance Abduljabbar Ahmed, his deputy Nasser Al-Hamdani, ministry undersecretaries, the acting head of the Tax Authority and Customs Authority, and their deputies. The meeting discussed the situation of the ministry and the authority following their merger, along with efforts aimed at developing public finance functions, improving revenues, simplifying procedures for taxpayers, enhancing partnership with the private sector, and advancing the qualification and training of staff.
In the meeting, Judge Miftah stated that the government, since its formation, has focused on the Ministry of Finance and strengthening its vital role, developing its working mechanisms in line with the state leadership's vision to advance institutional, administrative, financial, and service structures. He expressed hope that the decisions related to public finance would bring a qualitative shift in work mechanisms and simplify procedures, noting that the merger of the Tax and Customs Authorities into a single entity, as well as the inclusion of the State Lands and Real Estate Authority within the ministry's structure, was aimed at improving relations with taxpayers and facilitating procedures.
The Acting Prime Minister affirmed that the Ministry of Finance represents the 'eye of the state and society' across all sectors and bears responsibility for monitoring financial irregularities and addressing them promptly. He also highlighted the recent structural changes within the ministry and their intended impact on facilitating procedures, improving coordination with other bodies such as pharmaceuticals, ports, standards institutions, and achieving integration and smooth workflow.
Judge Miftah directed efforts toward preparing border crossings and improving their operational mechanisms to accommodate passenger procedures and prevent delays or disruptions, in coordination with the Ministry of Interior. He emphasized that the ministry's plan for 1448 AH should be exemplary compared to other government bodies, given its qualified and experienced workforce. He urged the ministry leadership to focus on training and qualification, maintaining and inspecting ministry facilities through field visits, addressing shortcomings, simplifying procedures, transactions with government entities and citizens, and continuously developing them.
He stressed that the Ministry of Finance should remain a model institution across all government bodies, bringing about a fundamental transformation in work mechanisms to become a house of transparency, accuracy, justice for the state, citizens, while honoring creativity and excellence in performance. He stated: 'We are nothing in this government except servants of this people-responsible and honorable people-and we do not accept anyone undermining our integrity and honesty.'
At the end of his remarks, he pointed out that workshops will be held to discuss papers, proposals on improving revenues and encouraging investment opportunities, with participation from the Ministry of Finance and other relevant authorities.
For his part, the Finance Minister reviewed the ministry's activities, its affiliated units, noting that the ministry and the Tax and Customs Authority have made significant progress in automation, in addition to training and qualifying employees. He referred to ongoing work on developing revenue improvement legislation and planning investment projects within the 1448 AH plan, affirming that the ministry, authority continue to provide services and incentives to taxpayers despite the difficult financial conditions.
The Minister stated that state revenues do not exceed 37% of their 2014 level, emphasizing efforts to shift the mindset of citizens and taxpayers toward viewing the authority as a partner rather than an adversary. He also noted that around 6,000 cases are currently in courts and are being resolved amicably under the 1448 AH plan, explaining that tax collection at entry points will strengthen efforts to develop operational mechanisms and reduce issues.
Minister Abduljabbar added that the ministry will include the decision to link mobile devices via manufacturing codes in its plan for the next year (1448 AH) to curb smuggling, stressing the importance of cooperation with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in networking and integrating systems between the two ministries.