Korea grants Jordan $18m for health, education projects

AMMAN — Jordan and South Korea on Monday signed grant agreements worth $18 million (around JD12.7 million) to help the Kingdom implement three projects in different sectors.

The Korean contribution will be directed to the health and education sectors, and to support a project for the General Supplies Department, according to Planning Minister Ibrahim Saif.

The first grant, worth $4.2 million, will go towards building and equipping the Amman, Tabarbour and Northern Twal comprehensive healthcare centres.

The second $5.5 million grant will go to the Education Ministry to finance the establishment of a centre for deaf people, while the third $8.5 million grant will finance the establishment of an e-procurement system for the General Supplies Department.

Following the signing of the agreements with South Korean Ambassador to Jordan Choi Hong-ghi, the minister noted that Jordan has obtained seven soft loans from Korea to implement developmental projects of national priority since 1992.

“Currently, there are four projects under implementation with loans from the Korean Bank that stand at $184.4 million,” Saif said, adding that one of these projects is the nuclear research reactor at the Jordan University of Science and Technology.

Korea has also provided the Kingdom with grants totalling $23.1 million between 2004 and 2013, according to the minister. 

The Korean ambassador highlighted the importance of Jordanian-Korean relations since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1962, expressing his commitment towards maintaining development cooperation "for years to come".