Microfund for Women drops 523 delinquent cases

AMMAN — The Microfund for Women (MFW) dropped 523 cases against gharimat, indebted women, as part of His Majesty King Abdullah’s initiative, launched last month, to support indebted women.

The total value of the executive cases on claims ranging between JD500 and JD1,000 that the MFW had dropped stood at JD400,000, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The MFW, in accordance with the criteria and conditions set by the Cabinet and the Ministry of Awqaf, informed the Central Bank of Jordan that the debts were written off and the suits against the delinquent beneficiaries were dropped.

Executive procedures against women who took out loans of less than JD1,000 but did not meet the criteria of the gharimat initiative were also halted, the MFW said.

They were granted a six-month grace period, as of March 26, to rectify their delinquency status, according to the MFW.

Some 150,000 women are currently benefitting from the fund’s programmes and services, at a payback rate that exceeds 98 per cent.

King Abdullah, in a call-in with Jordan Television’s “Yise’d Sabahak” programme on March 22, saluted all Jordanian mothers on the occasion of Mother’s Day, and called for a joint national effort to support indebted Jordanian women unable to pay back loans they had taken to support their families.

On March 30, the Zakat Fund announced that His Majesty would cover the debts of 1,500 gharimat.

The Zakat Fund, which is in charge of supervising the execution of the initiative, had already raised JD3 million before the King’s donation.

Women whose debts exceed 1,000 will also receive help if additional funds are received, said Minister of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs Abdul Nasser Abul Bassal, who also heads the Zakat Fund’s administration team, noting that the fund is still receiving donations for the cause.