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AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah, the Supreme Commander of the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army (JAF), accompanied by HRH Crown Prince Hussein, on Sunday attended the ceremony organised by the JAF at the Martyr’s Memorial to mark the 19th Accession to the Throne Day, the Great Arab Revolt anniversary and Army Day. 

Upon the King’s arrival, also accompanied by several Royal family members, the artillery performed a 21-gun salute and the national anthem was played, a Royal Court statement said. 

His Majesty was received by Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Lt. Gen. Mahmoud Freihat, the director of the Martyr’s Memorial and directors of the security agencies, he reviewed the Guard of Honour. 

The King and the ceremony’s attendees recited the Fatiha (the opening chapter of Koran) for the souls of fallen soldiers, who died in the line of duty in the Kingdom and Palestine, setting an example of “sacrifice for peace and justice and serving humanity”. 

His Majesty laid wreaths on the tomb of the Unknown Soldier located in the memorial’s vicinity.

The King also toured the memorial, where the stories of fallen soldiers are showcased, and wrote a remark in the honoured guests’ record. 

The King then bestowed Royal medals on several officers and commissioned officers for distinguished service and performance from the JAF, the Public Security Department, the General Intelligence Department, the Civil Defence Department, and the Gendarmerie Department, in appreciation of their sacrifices in serving their duties with courage and dedication, as well as to reflect the leading role of the security services in safeguarding the country and its citizens, which is above all considerations.

AMMAN — Foreign Minister in the caretaker government Ayman Safadi on Sunday discussed with UK Minister of State for International Development Alistair Burt bilateral ties, the Palestinian cause and other regional issues.

During the meeting, Safadi and Burt stressed the importance of intensifying efforts to reach political solutions for the region's conflicts and to assist people of the Gaza Strip by delivering humanitarian and medical aid.

The meeting also touched on the economic crisis facing the UNRWA and the need to continue supporting the agency, a Foreign Ministry statement said.

Safadi briefed Burt on Jordan’s policies and visions regarding regional challenges and the efforts led by His Majesty King Abdullah to maintain security, stability and realising comprehensive peace.

The two ministers agreed on sustaining communication to enhance both countries’ relations and coordination related to efforts of solving the regional crises.    

AMMAN — The EU is committed to continue support for Jordan and maintaining a strong partnership with the Kingdom,  EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini  said on Sunday.

She described Jordan as one of Europe's best partners in the world.

At a joint press conference with Minister of Foreign Affairs in the caretaker government Ayman Safadi in Amman, the EU official announced a 20 million euro deal for implementing social protection projects, and said that the EU's support to Jordan since 2016 has reached 1 billion euros to date.

"As part of the one billion euros, we have the second tranche of micro-financial assistance for this year that is ready to be disposed. This tranche of 100 million euros is linked to economic and fiscal reforms," she said.

“Our message to Jordan and Jordanian people is one of strong partnership between the EU and Jordan, and a message of support to all Jordanians and Jordan as a country,” she said, stressing on the Kingdom’s vital role in the region.

She said the EU highly values Jordan’s “wise, balanced and unique” role and that the EU wants to support Jordan with all possible means at its disposal, including economic means.

On Jordan’s recent request to revise the EU relaxed rules of origin, she said: “I expect a decision about that in the coming weeks, and that will increase access of Jordanian goods to European markets.”

“We know how important this is for the Jordanian economy, and especially to support the private sector in Jordan,” she said.

During the press conference, Safadi said the “EU’s support and partnership to Jordan is something that we highly value”.

“The amount of coordination and support we have from the EU is something that helped in our development process…  We discussed ways and means to expand on this partnership, whether in terms of economic support and improving the free trade agreement that we have with Europe while making sure that the relaxed rules of origin deal is addressed in a way that will yield better results for both of us,” said Safadi.

The minister highlighted the impact of regional conditions and the presence of a large number of Syrian refugees on the Kingdom.

During the presser, the two sides stressed the centrality of the Palestinian issue, stressing that the key for peace in the region is ending the Palestinian-Israeli conflict on the basis of the two-state solution.

“I want to thank King Abdullah as the custodian of the holy sites in Jerusalem. This is a key issue and a key priority not only for the Arab world…It is a key issue for Europe and all Europeans, as we have in Europe Christians, Muslims and Jews, and thus the nature and future of Jerusalem is of crucial importance,” said Mogherini.

“We would like to see Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine and Israel,” she said, stressing that the only realistic solution for the conflict is a two-state solution.

She also underlined the need for continued support to UNRWA to make sure that the UN agency receives adequate funding to carry out its mission.

Safadi reiterated that the two-state solution is the only solution to break the stalemate in peace talks that is “further complicating the situation” in the Middle East.

“On that we see-eye-to-eye: on the need to end the stalemate and move forward with the effective measure that would take us out of this stalemate into a solution that is based on the two-state solution,” said Safadi.

“For Jordan this is the key issue, and we believe that, unless that conflict is resolved on the basis of the two state solution with East Jerusalem as its capital of Palestine, the region will not enjoy peace and stability that it deserves,” he added.

Discussions also covered Syria, with the two sides stressing the need for a political solution to the crisis in Syria on the basis of the UN Resolution 2254 within the Geneva Process.

AMMAN — The traditional scenes of a storyteller presenting an old story at a traditional cafe that are shown in TV series triggered the curiosity of Bara Amayrah to attend, a male-dominated café in downtown Amman. 

Amayrah noted that, in the past, the idea of visiting one of the old cafés in Amman’s city centre was not appealing at all. 

The scene has been changed thanks to a number of storytellers who joined forces to revive the art of storytelling and to draw a new kind of visitor into these cafés: women. 

“It was not acceptable for a woman to visit such cafés as it is all attended by men, but society has been changed now and there is no difference between women and men,” she told The Jordan Times as she was sitting at the Central Café on Saturday.

Al Moultqa and Al Balad Theatre, which are both under the umbrella of Hakaya, invited the three  storytellers Sally Shalabi, better known as Shalabieh Al Hakawatieh, Faisal Azzah and Majed Sabra to introduce stories of traditional and historical significance at the Central Cafe during Ramadan.

This bygone tradition of storytelling started to vanish due to modernity but these artists are trying to revive it, where a storyteller was the only way of entertainment people used to have during the old history of this region. 

Shalabi, the first female storyteller to stand in the middle of Central Café to present a story, said the aim behind this event is “to bring life into this old cultural venue through a traditional art”. 

She noted that the good thing is that the audience and the artist are newcomers: women. “The cafe was crammed with women during the past activities. We do not want to have the cafe and the art abandoned,” she told The Jordan Times ahead of her performance.  

She noted that her story focuses on participation, compassion, greed, love and patience. “These elements are highlighted through ordeals characters go through during the course of the story,” she said.  

Shalabi described people’s reaction during the performance as positive and described stories as “the mother of art”.

“Because without a story there is no theatre, no film, no picture, no song or poetry,” she added.  

Saif Minaam, the son of the cafe’s owner, said they wanted to host this event because they wanted to target a new segment of society who are women.

“Because it is known among society that the cafe is frequented by men so we wanted to change this outlook,” he told The Jordan Times, stressing that they also wanted to revive the art of storytelling because it is an art that is almost dead.  

Amayrah said she got bored of modern activities. “It is very important for children to attend such activities because it triggers their imagination,” said the mother of one boy.

Faisal Al Azzah, another participating storyteller, echoed Amayrah’s sentiment. “Internet and TV curb the imagination of people because you see visuals and you cannot imagine them, but the story encourages your imagination,” he added. 

Saturday’s night event was the last activity of storytelling during Ramadan. 

AMMAN — Policymakers, academics and government officials from around the globe recently gathered in Washington DC to discuss new ways to tackle global migration, displacement, and humanitarian policy challenges in the 21st century, as part of the official launch of the “Migration, Displacement and Humanitarian Policy” programme.

Organised by the Washington based Center for Global Development (CGD), the conference aimed to “foster constructive dialogue around the global compacts on migration and refugees, and advance policy discussion on a range of issues such as innovative labour mobility agreements, compacts for refugee and host livelihoods, and reform of the humanitarian system”, CGD director of communications Holly Shulman told The Jordan Times.

In his opening remarks, CGD president Masood Ahmed said: “We are thrilled to see the launch of our programme that brings together the different streams of research and policy work in these areas that we see more and more interconnected.”

“Rather than thinking about migration as having a set of fixed benefits or costs, it is the policy framework under which you manage migration that determines what the outcomes are going to be in terms of balance of benefits and costs,” Ahmed stressed, citing the long term work undertaken by researchers Cindy Huang, Jeremy Konyndyk and Michael Clemens that helps enlighten policy work in areas affected by migration such as Jordan.

Starting off the discussion panels, former executive director of the UN World Food Programme Catherine Bertini, former US assistant secretary of state for international organization affairs Bathsheba Crocker and former US assistant secretary of state for population, refugees, and migration Eric Schwartz tackled the issue of “aspirations vs limitations: can humanitarian reform deliver change?”

“This topic doesn’t need this much discussion. Actually, if we had more senior national and international leadership on resolving crises, or ‘political will’, we would not need this many discussions around issues facing the humanitarian world,” Bertini claimed, before moving on to highlight the need to distinguish between the number of displaced and the state of humanitarian funding.

“We cannot keep comparing the current situation to that of the past,” she stressed, citing the case of the protracted Syrian and Yemenis crises which “created refugees who need aid for longer, hence for larger amounts of money.”

She commended the voluntary nature of humanitarian funding, saying “I believe this is one of the points that should be retained in any new model as it allows for more accountability, responsibility and effectiveness compared to assessed funding.”

Schwartz, who is the current president of the NGO Refugees International, went on to discuss ways to reform and improve the humanitarian system, noting “we are facing the challenge of a large number of agencies and operations trying to do good but in a very uncoordinated, unmanaged way.”

Acknowleding the “progress made on real self sufficiency mechanisms such as education and employment,” he stressed, however, “we cannot achieve transformative humanitarian architectural reform at the same time as we are witnessing the erosion of rights for refugees, migrants, and asylum seekers”.

During his presentation in the panel titled “Responding to Protracted Displacement: Innovation in Challenging Times”, director of the Jordan Compact Project Management Unit Feras Momani stated: “When it comes to such crises, rather than addressing immediate short term humanitarian needs, the idea is to look at it as a development challenge and take into consideration the long term economic development needs.” 

Adressing the specific case of Jordan, Momani introduced the launch of the Jordan Compact Project Management Unit following the London Conference on the Syrian Crisis in 2016, saying: “We wanted to make sure that the activities targets of the Jordan Compact are being met, especially in light of the large number of actors involved in the compact”.

“We are working to consider Syrian refugees as assets not burdens, meaning that we are not only looking at their immediate needs such as water, food, shelter etc. The Jordan Compact realises that refugees are human beings with needs that are much more than humanitarian. They have their own aspirations, skills, etc,” he told the audience, stressing “this is especially relevant in the case of Jordan, which hosts some 1.4 refugees from protracted crises in the region.” 

Invited as a keynote speaker, UN special representative for international migration Louise Arbouralso emphasised the “bigger picture” entailed in the current narrative on migration. “There is a lot more to migration and development than remittances,” she stated, pointing out the need for migration policy to be “fair and nuanced, especially at the most granular level.”

“With its implications across so many broad areas, the issue of migration needs to be tackled in a way that maximises the economic and social benefits of human mobility for all,” the UN official commented.

“As countries struggle with political pressures to close borders and question the value of traditional aid to humanitarian emergencies, divisive rhetoric can often drown out reasoned debate,” said Schulman, noting that the CGD event came to address “the imperative for pragmatic evidence on migration, forced displacement, and humanitarian policies.”

The event also witnessed the official launch of the migration programme’s flagship project, a study in a series of migration policy recommendations titled “Migration Is What You Make It”.

“This series will offer synthetised evidence on the economic, social and other impacts of human mobility, and how policy can shape these impacts for greater benefit for host and origin countries, as well as migrants themselves,” Shulman concluded.

AMMAN — As more than 70 per cent of Jordanians are under 30, the Kingdom needs to bolster government-led youth initiatives, foster youth political inclusion and address issues that face them to prevent their exclusion, a report by the Brookings Institution said.

Titled “Marginalised youth: Toward an inclusive Jordan”, the report stated that the government needs to enhance government-led youth initiatives by strengthening the Ministry of Youth (MoY), including youth in both the development and implementation of initiatives, and establishing better coordination between government institutions, NGOs and donors.

“Across Jordan, the government allocates only limited resources to tackle issues such as youth exclusion, unemployment and poverty, especially with respect to the most vulnerable youth,” the report, released on Saturday, indicated, stressing “with the encouragement of the UN and other international actors, Jordan must significantly improve and release budgetary resources for youth across government institutions.”

“International donors should play their part in a Youth Sector Working Group that better links youth policy implementation with the sharing of resources, while also avoiding sectoral replication,” the report indicated, recommending fostering youth political inclusion through lowering the minimum age for candidacy in elections, introducing youth quotas in parliament and municipal councils, and accelerating youth voter awareness campaigns.

“Jordan should promote civic youth through developing and teaching curricula that encourage civic engagement, allowing youth spaces for political and civic participation to flourish, and incorporating a youth inclusion principle in NGO and civil society registration procedures,” the report indicated, adding “youth in Jordan are educated but not in ways that promote civic inclusion and participation. It is therefore time to establish norms of civic engagement in state-led curriculum planning.”

According to the report, coordination between ministries to train and support teachers to inspire principles of civic engagement in Jordanians from an early age would also build community resilience against radicalisation and extremism.

“Jordan needs to ease the school-to-work transition through developing employment training programmes and enhancing vocational opportunities in secondary and tertiary level education in Jordan and public-and private-sector initiatives should be encouraged to drive the process,” the report continued.

On key challenges facing the youth, the report said that the Kingdom’s economy has failed to expand to allow for the number of young Jordanians to enter the workforce on an annual basis, citing unemployment as one of the most pressing issues.

“Social, political and economic practices have marginalised young Jordanian women,” the report claimed, noting that “despite some noted improvements in opportunities for political participation, state and society continue to constrain and limit the potential of Jordan’s young women even more so than their male counterparts”.

Official statistics indicate that only 13.2 per cent of Jordanian women (including young women) are economically active (employed or seeking work). Moreover, young Jordanian women are experiencing high rates of unemployment, especially compared to men. 

Yet, barriers such as education are not the problem, the report indicated, citing Jordanian women’s high literacy and college graduation rate.

“Job creation for young women is a pressing challenge. Low wages, lack of childcare provision, poor public transport infrastructure, along with cultural and societal constraints are among a plethora of checks that discourage or stop young women from achieving their economic potential and contributing to the Jordanian economy.” the report noted, adding that even once in the workforce, young women experience pay gaps, earning 41 per cent less than men in the private sector and 28 per cent less in the public sector.

Director of the Phenix Centre for Economic and Informatics Studies Ahmad Awad, said: “Youth and women in Jordan suffer from marginalisation and there is a need to address policies to change the situation.”

Citing latest figures by the Department of Statistics, he said unemployment among Jordanians aged 15-24 reached between 37 per cent and 47 per cent, which he said is one of the highest in decades.

“Unemployment among women is around 27 per cent, which is also high,” Awad stated, calling on Jordan to focus more on vocational and technical education rather than placing academic education to help the youth find jobs in demand in the labour market.

For Hussein Khuzai, a professor of sociology at Al Balqa Applied University, youth inclusion is “key” to addressing Jordan’s challenges.

“Young people in Jordan are energetic and enthusiastic about contributing to their country and they should be given the chance,” he said, adding “it is very important to help them fill their time by implementing initiatives that make a difference in the local community so they feel engaged.”

“This is significant at this time as there are mounting economic challenges and frustrations they face,” he told The Jordan Times.

AMMAN — Researchers, students and the public at large have been given access to an online database linked to a web mapping application that provides facts and figures on over 2,000 species of Jordan’s fauna and flora, the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) announced.

Reports, publications and distribution maps of plants, birds and animals of Jordan are now available to the public under the recently-launched Biodiversity Information Management System (BIMS) via its website: http://80.90.161.188/bims/public/index.aspx 

The RSCN created the BIMS under the four-year “Integrating Biodiversity in the Tourism Sector” project, which began in 2014 in cooperation with the Global Environment Facility and the UN Development Programme, according to the RSCN.

The database has always been available for internal use, according to Natalia Boulad, head of RSCN’s GIS unit, who said that it has been documenting results of reports and studies at the society’s nature reserves, and provided information on the country’s fauna and flora for scientific usage.

“We recently decided to have data on Jordan’s biodiversity available for everyone, be they researchers, students, companies conducting environment impact assessments or the public at large,” Boulad told The Jordan Times on Sunday.

The BIMS is developed to become a useful tool for anyone interested in biodiversity, ranging from students and researchers to decision makers, according to the database’s website, which indicated that it provides a big set of reports and other publications related to Jordan’s biodiversity in general, and to the projects’ sites and other protected areas, with appropriate GIS and web-based IT systems in addition to Wildlife Species Database.

The system also includes a strong search tool that enables users to find the information they are looking for, with content on Jordan’s biodiversity in facts and figures, library and media library, protected areas, Petra, Rum and Jerash study areas, Jordan’s Journal of Natural History, National Conservation Monitoring Centre and maps, the official said.

“The lack of information management system at the national level has hampered the use of biodiversity data in several activities, including environmental impact assessment, land use planning, public and academic research and eco-tourism industry among other sphere,” the RSCN indicated, adding “this shortage of data accessibility was identified as one of the main issues identified on the national and institutional levels.”

Boulad indicated that the number of plant species recorded under the system stands at 2,482 species, while the number of faunal species currently stands at 736.

“The database will be regularly updated to include newly-recorded species or track changes,” she highlighted. 

AMMAN — A business guide aimed at introducing Jordanians to Swedish companies present in the Kingdom was recently launched to boost the economic ties between the two countries.

“While Sweden’s brand is strong in Jordan, there are numerous products and services that are delivered from Sweden without people knowing,” said Swedish Ambassador to Jordan Erik Ullenhag in the guide’s opening note, citing an energy grid recently delivered to the northern governorates, transportation and logistics solutions, heavy machinery components and pharmaceuticals.

“Over 30 different Swedish companies operate in Jordan, almost exclusively managed by Jordanians,” noted trade commissioner and country manager at Business Sweden Ali Shakir, referring to the 300 employees at IKEA Amman and to the creation of over 100 jobs in Hem’s four retail stores, over 40 per cent of whom are female employees.

“Their work is an expression of how we are stronger together and their contribution is not only high quality products and services with corporate social responsibility: ultimately, what they provide is jobs, growth skills and better lives,” Shakir stressed, highlighting that, in addition to all Jordanians directly employed by Swedish or Sweden-related companies, a substantial amount of indirect jobs is also created in the local labour market. 

Launched mid-May, the first edition of the Sweden-Jordan Business Guide, a copy of which was sent to The Jordan Times, constitutes an “in-depth resource bank” of Swedish companies in Jordan and their activities, in addition to an informational guide on how to trade with and invest in both countries.

“Swedish companies are actively developing the business exchange with Jordan, building on decades of successful presence in the country,” said Ullenhag, stressing “the Jordanian market has an increasing appeal as the country is transforming from a niched market in the region to embracing technological advancements and sustainability efforts”.

During the period 2012-2017, Jordanian imports from Sweden reached $371 million while Swedish imports from Jordan stood at $26.34 million, according to official figures.

According to project manager at Business Sweden Sally Al Saied, “Swedish companies are very well positioned to provide support through their substantial experience of knowledge transfer, resource development and sustainable business,” noting “it is not unusual to see Jordanian businesses’ creations being inspired by Swedish companies”.

Divided into four sections, the guide outlined businesses in the fields of innovation and export, sustainable business, higher education and research and healthcare and life science.

“There are numerous examples of Swedish commitment to develop business ties with Jordan,” the Business Sweden team wrote, citing Volvo Cars, Volvo Trucks and Buses and the Swedish Jordanian Chemicals Company which all established their presence in the Kingdom over the course of 2017, as part of their “long-term engagement plan for the Jordanian market”. 

They also cited forecasted increased engagement from Swedish companies including Wayne’s Coffee, which has an expansion plan encompassing 15 new stores and over 175 new employees across Jordan.

“Jordan and Sweden similarly harbour some 10 million people, less than 0.15 percent of the world’s population,” the Swedish ambassador told The Jordan Times, highlighting how “both countries have sought to actively maneuver a peaceful path through rough times with aggressive neighbours”. 

“We have both welcomed people fleeing from war or oppression and kept borders open for trade,” he said, stressing the need for two countries which “punch far above their weight on the international scene” to keep collaborating effectively together both in the bilateral and international realms.

AMMAN — The Court of Cassation has upheld a February Criminal Court ruling sentencing  a man to 8 years in prison after convicting him of molesting a child  in May 2016.

The court declared the defendant guilty of molesting a seven-year-old boy on May 16 while returning home from school and handed him the maximum punishment.

Court papers said the defendant met the victim in the street and dragged him to a nearby empty school.

“The defendant undressed the child and touched him on his private parts and kissed him on his mouth,” the court said, adding that the victim started crying and ran away to his family whom he informed of the incident.

“The family filed a complaint at the Family Protection Department and the defendant was summoned for questioning,” the court added, noting that the defendant confessed to the incident in front of the police and the Criminal Court prosecutor.

The defendant contested the Criminal Court’s ruling charging that he should get a reduction in penalty “since the victim’s family dropped charges against the defendant”.

However, the higher court ruled that the “the defendant does not benefit from any reduction in penalty because the victim is under the age of 12 as stipulated in the newly-amended Penal Code”.

“The Criminal Court followed the proper proceedings when sentencing the defendant deserves the verdict he received,” the Court of Cassation ruled. 

The Court of Cassation judges were Mohammad Ibrahim, Naji Zubi, Yassin Abdullat, Nayef Samarat and Majid Azab. 

AMMAN — Secretary General of the Association of Arab Universities (AArU) Sultan Abu Orabi Al Odwan on Friday warned of the “poor level of scientific and applied research in Jordan and the Arab region compared to Western countries”, attributing this “weakness” to the lack of financing and the migration of researchers searching for better opportunities. 

The remarks came during a meeting held by AArU on Friday, which saw the attendance of former ministers and presidents of universities across the Kingdom and the Arab region.

Former general director of the Research Support Fund (RSF) at the Higher Education Ministry Abeer Al Bawab told The Jordan Times: “In most Arab countries, the responsibility for research falls on the shoulders of university professors who perform investigations as a component of their careers — but not as the main part of it.”

“They are educators who do research in order to become better professors, and, while their investigations are of good quality, they are still limited when it comes to improving the overall state of research in Jordan,” Bawab continued, stressing “opportunities for further research are generally low and that is what pushes most academics to migrate. The most evident way to stop this is to increase the research funding by encouraging the private and industrial sectors to cooperate with universities.” 

Odwan called on all concerned parties to “overcome the barriers to keep abreast of the global scientific and technological developments”, pointing to AArU’s role in “networking with the international community to conduct joint research among the association’s member universities and other institutions abroad”. 

Over the past 10 years, RSF spent a total of JD42 million on scientific research, having invested JD20 million on research projects, JD14 million on national projects, JD2 million on scientific conferences and JD2.5 million on scientific journals, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported in March.

In addition, the fund granted over JD4 million on student scholarships, and JD500,000 on research excellence awards.

“These investments were made as a first step aimed at developing Jordan’s research output and the situation did indeed improve, but, if we take a look at the number of researchers in the Kingdom, we realise that it is still very low,” Bawab said, noting that the percentage of the GDP invested in research in other countries is “way higher” than in Jordan.

On the future of the research sector in Jordan, Bawab noted the RSF, which is no longer independent, also does not count with the figure of a general director anymore, expressing concerns over the RSF “becoming a small department in the ministry” and “the way this could affect the funding available for the research sector”.