Jordan's cabinet reshuffle concluded successfully Sunday night when King Abdullah II accepted the oath of 10 new ministers and resignations of three.

The current cabinet's members, under the leadership of Prime Minister Faisal al-Fayez, raised from 20 to 27, including four women ministers.

This was the first reshuffle since Fayez was appointed prime minister in Oct. 2003, seen as an important move to enhance the country's administrative development and reform, local press said.

Former Foreign Minister Marwan Muasher took the posts of deputy prime minister and minister of state for prime ministry affairs and government performance.

The newly-created post was aimed at ensuring the government's supervision over the policy-making body's administrative responsibility.

Hani Mulki, 53, former minister of energy and trade and ambassador to Egypt, succeeded Muasher to become the top diplomat of the country.

With the cancellation of some double portfolios, 10 new ministers joined in the cabinet to push forward the government's plans of raising the people's standards of living.

Meanwhile, 11 ministers have retained their single portfolios in the reshuffle.

Fayez said after the reshuffle that the political development process was still a priority for the government and his cabinet would continue working to ensure an even greater public participation in the country's political agenda.

The premier stressed that administrative reform and the restructuring of institutions and ministries would not affect social and job security, adding that the reform will not have impact on political and economic development.

The focus on administrative reform means that the government will stick to its plans to achieve comprehensive development in all sectors, he said.

He said that the issues of human resources, health care and poverty alleviation as well as advancing the judiciary and the political arena would be the focus of the government's action plan.

Source: Xinhua