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AMMAN — As 2019 comes to a close, the number of refugees registered in Jordan currently stands at 744,795, according to a recent statement from the UNHCR. 

The number includes approximately 655,000 Syrians, 67,000 Iraqis, 15,000 Yemenis, 6,000 Sudanis and 2,500 refugees from a total of 52 other nationalities, the statement said. 

Building on the successes of previous years, UNHCR has continued to provide protection, health, education, cash assistance for basic needs and livelihood support among other services to refugees of all nationalities throughout the year, according to the statement.

Despite its work to support refugees throughout the year, UNHCR’s operation in Jordan was only 58 per cent funded at the end of 2019, noted the statement. 

Although support from the international community, including major donors such as the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, Canada and the European Union, has been “graciously welcomed, it remains evident that prioritisation of the needs of refugees in 2020 is much needed if UNHCR is to continue helping the most vulnerable families in Jordan”, read the statement.

With 83 per cent of refugees living outside refugee camps in urban areas, in 2019 UNHCR Jordan continued to operate a one-refugee approach in its response to refugees. 

Just over 40,000 refugee families of all nationalities were reached with monthly multipurpose cash assistance throughout the year, costing an average of $5.5million each month, and so far around 76,000 families have received one-off winterisation cash assistance to help cover needs such as rent, heating and warm clothes throughout the winter months, the statement said.

Over the course of the year, UNHCR and partners continued to provide healthcare services to refugees in Jordan. 

In April, the decrease of medical costs for Syrian refugees in Jordan, to the uninsured Jordanian rate, “marked a significant step forward demonstrating the generosity that the Government of Jordan has shown towards refugees and what can be achieved when the international community stands in solidarity with host countries”.

Over 328,000 medical consultations have been provided to refugees throughout the country and over $1.3 million has been distributed under the cash for health project to refugees in need of emergency care. 

Referrals of emergency cases from inside Zaatari and Azraq refugee camps to urban hospitals for further treatment have also totalled 15,000 cases.

UNHCR’s focus on improving access to higher education for refugees inside and outside of Jordan also continues with 592 refugee students currently studying at Jordanian universities under the DAFI scholarship programme. 

In 2019, young people were also supported to access scholarships at higher education institutions in third countries like Japan, Canada and the UK.

Innovation also featured heavily in UNHCR’s education approach. Early 2019 saw the launch of a network of 10 innovative Connected Learning Hubs in community centres across the Kingdom enhancing education opportunities and access to online learning for refugees of all ages. 

In addition, UNHCR continued to emphasize the need to support Jordanians in the local community as well as refugees. A new partnership with Luminus Technical University College, for example, has seen over 50 refugees and Jordanian youth embark on diploma courses.

Recognising the need to support local Jordanians boost their economic welfare alongside refugees, over 100 home-based businesses have been registered through UNHCR’s partnership with Blumont following the decision of the Jordanian Government to allow refugees to license and operate businesses from home in late 2018.

In addition, the cumulative number of work permits issued to Syrian refugees in Jordan currently stands at around 165,000, representing 45 per cent of the working age population, the statement said.

Permitting refugees to work in the sectors of agriculture, manufacturing, construction and some hospitality industries, and as recognised at the recent Global Refugee Forum in Geneva, Jordan is one of the countries leading the way when it comes to refugee employment, noted the statement. 

More still needs to be done, however, in improving the access of women to the labour market and supporting non-Syrian nationalities, the UN agency said.

By the end of 2019, a total of 5,952 individuals were submitted for resettlement to 13 countries and over 5,000 refugees have departed this year to rebuild their lives in a third country, the agency continued.

In line with global trends, however, the number of resettlement places available for refugees in Jordan continues to decrease and remains far from meeting the estimated 75,000 refugees who need resettlement from Jordan. 

Additionally, 30,000 Syrian refugees returned home from Jordan in 2019. Although the flow of returns has remained steady throughout the year, refugees in Jordan continue to cite safety, security and a lack of services and work opportunities as the main reasons hindering their return.

Responding to the protection needs of refugees, a community-based approach has seen 37 mobile helpdesks operate in eight different governates in Jordan where refugees can approach UNHCR with any legal and protection issues they dace outside of the main centres in Amman, Irbid, Mafraq, Zaatari and Azraq.

In coordination with partners, UNHCR has provided around 75,000 legal consultations for refugees in 2019 and continues to work with government ministries in leading trainings on refugee rights and responsibilities in order to build capacity. 

AMMAN — Social media is buzzing with praise for traffic police officers who braved chilly December temperatures in commitment to road safety, with users sharing photos and expressions of gratitude. 

“From my car window, I saw a traffic policeman trying to warm his hands with his breath,” said 26-year-old Baraa Awadallah, who stressed the importance of giving recognition to “all traffic officers working in the brisk December air”.

Traffic officers stay out in the cold for hours to maintain road safety, while struggling against adverse weather conditions, Awadallah told The Jordan Times on Saturday.

She added that motorists and pedestrians alike have been noticing the efforts of traffic police officers to ensure that the Kingdom’s streets are equipped to withstand emerging seasonal risks.

Abeer Nofal, 23, said that security personnel and traffic officers “display the spirit of the law through their responsible quest to enhance the security environment”.

As temperatures have dropped in the past few days, messages and pictures have been forwarded and shared, highlighting the vital role traffic officers play, Nofal told The Jordan Times.
“We are used to blaming the officers on the streets if there are cars lined up and honking repeatedly,” Nofal said, stressing that recently Jordan has been reminded of the “vital role of traffic police officers”, prompting the public to commend their hard work.

Suad Fadda, a working mother of two, said that with the presence of police officers on the streets, she “rests assured” that her 20-year-old son will return home safely every day.

AMMAN — Head of the Social Security Investment Funds (SSIF) Kholoud Saqaf, during her meeting with the president of the Jordan and Amman Chambers of Industry Fathi Jaghbir on Saturday, discussed "promising" investment opportunities in the industrial sector.

The meeting also covered the potential of establishing an international exhibition in partnership between the two sides, according to a statement from the Amman Chamber of Industry.

Jaghbir said that investment risks in the industrial sector are low in comparison to other sectors due to the size of the local industrial sector, the number of operating establishments and export markets.

The chamber president also praised the SSIF’s role as an “effective” investment tool in a large number of productive sectors, noting that the SSIF has a “competitive investment portfolio and great added value”.

He stressed that productive projects are an important contributor to preserving social security funds.

For her part, Saqaf said that the meeting focused on activating tools for investment and economic promotion of Jordan in a way that reflects on the national economy in general and the productive sectors in particular.

She called for increased coordination between the SSIF and the Jordan and Amman Industry Chambers, especially in holding exhibitions at the local and international levels.

Saqaf said that meeting was a “major step” in uniting efforts to develop investment opportunities between the two sides.

AMMAN — A total of 63,654 students have applied for internal grants, loans and scholarships for the 2019/2020 academic year, the Ministry of Higher Education said on Saturday. 

The applications were submitted online through the department of scholarship's website at the ministry, www.dsamohe.com, ministry spokesperson Muhannad Al Khatib said in a statement, adding that “only applications submitted online will be reviewed".

Khatib said that the department did not accept any applications after the submission deadline on November 28. 

The ministry is currently reviewing the applications in order to select candidates for the various funds in accordance with the by-law on the fund to support students in Jordanian universities, the spokesperson said.

The regulations and by-laws are published on the ministry's website, www.mohe.gove.jo, the statement said. 

Once the points are calculated from the applications and the names of the candidates are determined, the ministry will announce the initial results on the department of scholarships' website.

The statement added that students will have the chance to contest the results through an online application after the ministry has announced the initial results. 

AMMAN — The Foreign Ministry on Saturday condemned the terror attack that targeted a checkpoint in Mogadishu and resulted in dozens of casualties and injuries.

Ministry Spokesperson Daifallah Fayez expressed his deepest condolences over the loss of life and wished the injured a speedy recovery, according to a Foreign Ministry statement. Fayez reiterated the Kingdom's stance condemning and rejecting all forms of terrorism.  

AMMAN — The Crown Prince Foundation’s (CPF) Haqiq initiative on Saturday concluded its 2019 activities with the participation of 102 of its knights. Youth Minister Fares Breizat, in the presence of CPF CEO Tamam Mango, expressed his pride in the Haqiq knights' efforts in spreading awareness in their communities, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Bilal Oleimat, head of the initiative, said that the youth's efforts have positively influenced their local communities through a large number of events and activities that aimed at meeting their needs. Breizat also honoured the winners of the Haqiq councils, which were the Amman council in first place, the Zarqa council in second and the Irbid and Jerash councils in third place.

The Haqiq initiative is comprised of multiple bodies, including the Councils of Haqiq Knights, whose tasks are to organise youth engagement in local communities and reinforce the values of cooperative, institutionalised and organised societal work, according to Petra.

AMMAN — Public Security Department (PSD) Director Maj. Gen. Hussein Hawatmeh and Qatari Ambassador to Jordan Sheikh Saud Bin Nasser Al Thani on Saturday discussed means to enhance cooperation between the two countries’ police departments and to exchange expertise.

Hawatmeh highlighted the importance of security and training cooperation between Jordan and Qatar, especially after the merging of the gendarmerie and civil defence departments into the PSD, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

For his part, the Qatari diplomat commended the PSD and its cooperation with its Qatari counterpart, voicing aspiration for further cooperation with the PSD in all specialisations. 

AMMAN — The Jordan Enterprise Development Corporation (JEDCO) has acquired the necessary approvals to manage and implement a project titled “Intellectual Properties Capacities for Smart, Sustainable and Inclusive Growth in the Mediterranean Region” (IPMED), according to JEDCO.

In a statement on Saturday, the corporation noted that IPMED will be implemented in partnership with Greece, Italy, Spain and Tunisia through a total of 1.194 million euros funded by the Cross-Border Cooperation Programme for the Mediterranean Basin within the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI CBCMED).

JEDCO CEO Bashar Al Zoubi said in the statement that the main priority of the project is to develop small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), promote economic and social development and support innovative entrepreneurs’ projects. These objectives fall in line with national goals to improve and develop the business environment for SMEs and promote a culture of entrepreneurship.

The project contributes to the innovation potential of start-ups and young and women entrepreneurs through enhancing Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) support by facilitating access to IPR and commercialisation schemes, and  strengthening IPR-related knowledge and awareness, Zoubi added, noting that the project will be implemented over the coming three years.

The CEO also stressed the importance of organising and implementing tailor-made seminars and e-learning facilities with a twofold purpose: Enhancing the capacities of public authorities and stakeholders in relation to essential IPR issues for improved policies and practice; and enhancing the capacities of public authorities and innovation brokers of all target regions for the provision of innovative services.

In addition to conducting a capacity-building phase, the project will provide services for start-ups and young and women entrepreneurs. This will allow for testing project results and provide room for potential improvement.

Following the work carried out in its activities, IPMED will submit a series of recommendations to public authorities and policy-makers for aligning national IPR policies with international best practices; thereby facilitating policy dialogue with relevant stakeholders to work on specific recommendations to that end, according to the statement.

Contributing to policy development in the field of IPR and innovation is one of the objectives of IPMED. Intellectual Property is a field where, despite intense international efforts for harmonisation, significant differences exist both in law and in practice from one country or organisation to the next. It is expected that the project activities will contribute to improving frameworks and practices in all target regions and countries, the statement noted.

AMMAN — The Iraqi Ministry of Oil on Saturday announced that it has completed the prequalifying process for companies interested in participating in the Iraqi-Jordanian oil pipeline project. 

The first phase of the project includes installing a 700-kilometre-long pipeline with a capacity of 2.250 million barrels within the Iraqi territories (Rmeilah-Haditha), according to an Iraqi Ministry of Oil statement made available to The Jordan Times. 

The second phase includes installing a 900-kilometre pipeline in Jordan between Haditha and Aqaba with a capacity of one million barrels.   

Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister for Energy and Minister of Oil Thamir Ghadhban said that the ministry had earlier formed a team to prepare legal contracts, address financial issues and oversee technical standards for implementing the project, according to the statement.

Ghadhban noted that the ministry set next May as the final date to receive offers for the project from the qualified companies.

The ministry will then review the offers and select the company that will "be instrumental in serving the public interest and achieving the ministry's goals", the statement said. 

The minister added that the ministry will select the winners of the bid before the end of 2020. 

The ministry said that the pipeline inside Iraq will be installed according to the engineering, procurement, construction and financing contract (EPCF) model, while in Jordan it will be executed under the build–own–operate–transfer (BOOT) system.

A ministerial meeting was held in Baghdad in February under the chairmanship of both countries’ prime ministers, during which they agreed to move forward with the pipeline project and grant Jordan the right to buy 150,000 barrels of oil transferred through the $5-billion pipeline project.

In January, Iraq approved a plan to provide Jordan with 10,000 barrels of oil daily from Baiji in Iraq to the Jordan Petroleum Refinery Company through tankers.

The tender for transporting the crude oil was floated by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources in March in implementation of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between Jordan and Iraq in early February to import Iraqi oil.

Under the MoU, the oil will cover 7 per cent of the Kingdom’s daily demand.

AMMAN — The volume of trade in the real estate sector has increased by around 45 per cent since the end of October when compared with the same period of last year, the Jordan Housing Developers Association (JHDA) said on Saturday.

"The government's executive bundles and incentives caused a significant increase in the number of sales of flats and land plots," JHDA President Zuhair Omari said.

Starting from the announcement of the government's economic incentive programme up until two weeks ago, the number of registered lands bundles reached 700, he noted.

He added: "Under the law, real-estate companies are not allowed to trade land, but they purchase them for construction. That means there will be new buildings, housing projects and more jobs to stimulate the economy, indicating a positive change in the future."

During the announcement of the first government executive bundle at the end of October, then-Finance Minister Ezzeddine Kanakrieh said the government decided to exempt real estate owners from registration and transfer fees by 50 per cent until the end of 2019.

However, Omari said that considering the positive outcomes, "we hope the government will continue providing these incentives for the next two years to maintain the positive indicators."

The JHDA president also called for lowering interest rates on real estate loans, which he said is the "main reason" for regression in the sector, and said that lowering the rates, combined with the incentives, "would guarantee even better results". 

In September, prior to the government's announcement of the four-package economic incentive programme, Omari warned of a rise in haphazard illegal construction resulting from the public’s low purchasing power and plummeting apartment sales.

At the time, he said the sector had been witnessing a steep regression since 2015, citing the drop in Jordanians’ purchasing power due to high interest rates on real estate loans and high living costs.

However, at present, with the government's packages aiming to stimulate the economy, Omari is hopeful that the real-estate sector will thrive in 2020.