As part of the plan to address poverty and unemployment and invest in youth, the government is planning to gradually resume the national military service in "a new way”, Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Omar Razzaz said on Sunday.

In his weekly address, Razzaz said that the Labour Ministry and the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army are expected to develop plans for the gradual implementation of the national service, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

At this stage, the military service will be mandatory for a certain age group, whose members are unemployed, neither students nor staying abroad, the PM said.

He added that the criteria will be announced later in the week.

He also highlighted His Majesty King Abdullah's constant directives to the government to improve the level of services offered to citizens, enhance their economic conditions and invest in the human capacities along with taking the necessary measures to address poverty and unemployment.  

To increase the youth’s participation in certain sectors, especially agriculture, Razzaz said that the government has developed a plan to include workers in the agricultural sector in social security and health insurance umbrella. 

The prime minister also reviewed developments in the fight against the pandemic, stressing that the government's vision in combating the virus is unaltered: "Citizens' health is the top priority and the goal is clear, which is containing the number of infections and deaths as much as possible until the end of the pandemic". 

The government’s anti-virus measures are aimed at preventing further community spread and maintaining the economic cycle and key daily life activities, including the resumption of the educational process and the reopening of airports and border crossings.

The prime minister highlighted the newly introduced area-specific isolation and lockdown approach, saying the new system allows the coronavirus crisis cell to take prompt and accurate decisions based on geographical data.

All these measures came amid global economic downturns, with countries' debts rising, he said, highlighting that major economies across the globe are expected to slow down by 5 to 15 per cent. 

During the address, delivered from the National Centre for Security and Crisis Management, the premier praised the rapid response of all stakeholders in extinguishing the wild fires in Ajloun.