187,500 young people participate in political engagement programmes — IEC

AMMAN — The Independent Election Commission (IEC) on Monday said that over 187,500 youth participated in awareness and training programmes to encourage engagement with political parties.

The IEC, in cooperation with the Crown Prince Foundation (CPF), has been focusing on academic programmes that aim to raise the youth’s awareness of election procedures.

The total number of the “I Participate Project - Universities” in its three stages reached 17,801 students, including 10,809 women, representing 47 public and private higher education institutions.

The “I Participate Project — Universities” is being implemented by the IEC in partnership with the CPF with the cooperation of Jordanian universities and colleges.  The initiative is supported by the Participation Project, according to a press statement from the IEC.

The project aims to integrate Jordanian youth in universities into public work by activating their role in the political, economic and social fields.

In addition, it aims to create a space for dialogue among the youth at the university, governorate and national levels to become acquainted with their priorities regarding political participation.

This endeavour is aligned with the implementation of the Jordanian government’s vision in this regard, the IEC statement stated.

The project, the IEC statement added, covers a number of national issues and priorities, such as political work, the rule of law, political participation for women and the youth, and the national identity, among other issues.

Last week, IEC Chief Commissioner Musa Maaytah, during a meeting with female journalists at IEC headquarters, stressed the importance of women and youth participation in the upcoming Parliamentary elections. 

Earlier this month, the IEC announced that a total of 4,918,772 citizens are eligible to vote in the upcoming Parliamentary elections.

The IEC stated that 53 per cent of registered voters are women, according to the government entity’s website.

In 2022, the Senate and the Lower House passed the 2022 amendments to the Political Parties Law, which require political parties to increase the proportion of women and youth to at least 20 per cent within three years after their foundation.

There should be no less than 1,000 founding members of political parties, and at least 10 per cent should be women and young people between 18 and 35 years old, according to the new law. 

The law also allows university students who join political parties to engage in partisan activities on campus without any infringement on their rights, as a bylaw will be issued to regulate such activities. 

In August 2022, the IEC and CPF signed a Memorandum of Understanding to increase the political awareness of the youth. CPF officials said then that the MoU is in accordance with HRH Crown Prince Hussein's directives to encourage students to get involved in political life and to enhance partisan culture.