Palestinian debts reach $390 million

The undersecretary of the Palestinian Ministry of Finance, Atef Alwana, said that the debts of the Palestinian National Authority reached $390 million at the end of November. $100 million of those debts had been offered as loans by Spain and Italy but were not used.

Palestinian President Yasser Arafat had recommended establishing a special committee called the Loans Committee and finding plans and ways of spending those loans.

Alwana added that the committee recommended setting up an independent Palestinian institution that would specialize in handling loans and suggested that the committee should be the main recipient of loans from donor countries.

The undersecretary called for benefiting from the experiences of some neighboring countries, pointing out that 33 % of the upcoming Israeli budget was dedicated to servicing the financial problems resulting from accumulated debts.

He expected that a Palestinian budget deficit could be averted in the upcoming year if tax payers paid their dues, as 30% of the tax payers are dodgers.