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AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah, the Supreme Commander of the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army (JAF), on Monday visited the General Command of JAF and met with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff Lt. Gen. Mahmoud Freihat and JAF heads of staff . 

His Majesty and Freihat discussed several issues of interest to JAF in the operational, training and logistic fields, according to a Royal Court statement.

The Supreme Commander checked on the level of preparedness of JAF units, and stressed his pride in its personnel and the “advanced level” they realised in terms of training and armament. 

AMMAN — Despite the national strategy implemented to improve the management of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW), Jordan continues to suffer from the economic, social and environmental consequences of over 2.5 million tonnes of MSW ending up at dumpsites and landfills each year, according to a Jordan Green Building Council report.

With the population increase caused by the refugee influx, pressure on the landfills has become unsustainable, with the amount of waste generated often outgrowing the landfills’ capacity, according to a study conducted by Oxfam in 2015. 

It found Mafraq Governorate, which hosts around 13 per cent of the Syrian refugees according to the latest UNHCR figures, to be one of the areas most affected by this waste issue.

To counter that trend, Oxfam has been running a project to divert waste produced in the Zaatari refugee camp away from the local landfills, outlined in its recent report “Trash Talk: turning waste into work in Jordan’s Zaatari refugee camp”.

Using the combined expertise of Syrians and Jordanians, the initiative offers cash-for-work opportunities to volunteers who go around the camp with the aim of encouraging households to separate their dry waste (such as cartons and cans) from their wet waste (like vegetable scraps).

Once separated, their waste is collected by trolley worker volunteers who deliver it to the transfer areas, where it is further separated and processed, the report showed, adding that the waste is then sold to companies who trade in reusable materials, and the profits are reinvested into the project. 

“The project offers cash-for-work opportunities to around 200 refugees each month, providing a much-needed means of income and a sense of purpose for participating camp residents,” Oxfam’s Interim Director in Jordan Nivedita Monga told The Jordan Times via e-mail. 

Entirely reliant on the participation of the camp community, the project was conducted in parallel with an outreach campaign to raise awareness about the initiative. Started as a pilot in one of the 12 administrative districts of the camp two years ago, the project lasted 40 weeks, during which over 80 tonnes of recycled materials were diverted from landfills. It has now expanded to cover the whole districts of the camp, according to the report. 

The project, which is funded by the Australian and German governments, has also greatly improved the quality of life and the living environment for the camp residents. 

“In the past, rubbish was everywhere along with the insects and other pests that come with it, although dumpsters were present throughout the camp but they overflowed to the point that there was nowhere but the ground to throw trash,” Jasem Al Wrewir, a team leader in the project was quoted in the report as saying, adding: “Now, the amount of rubbish in the streets has significantly decreased.”

“This project demonstrates how an innovative approach of SWM can create jobs, utilise the latent skills and experience of the Syrian refugee community and contribute to the expansion of new productive economic sectors, as well as improving the environment,” Monga concluded.  

AMMAN — The Cabinet on Sunday approved the 2017 e-payment and transfer by-law that aims at providing a suitable environment for switching into the digital economy.

The by-law seeks to organise the activities and administration of e-payment and transfer services in the Kingdom, in accordance with the best practices, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Monday. 

The regulations, approved in a session chaired by Prime Minister Hani Mulki, are envisioned to enhance efforts aimed at switching from the traditional payment method to electronic payment to achieve effective financial monitoring of public institutions and other sectors involved. 

They also seek to enhance the role of the Central Bank of Jordan in supervising e-payment and transfer services to enhance the efficiency of payment systems and protect consumers.

The by-law identifies the requirements and conditions of licensing e-payment systems, e-payment providers, cases under which such licences are cancelled, fees, fines, administrative penalties, the minimum rate of capitals and warranties, in addition to the periods for rectifying statuses for existing companies before the by-law comes into force.

It also lists the types of transactions that are required to be executed under licensed e-payment companies and systems.

The regulations identify the work procedures related to e-payment systems and ways to settle conflicts that may arise between parties engaged in an electronic money transfer, in addition to setting the conditions necessary to issue e-cheques.

AMMAN — A local study on Jordanians’ satisfaction with the justice system indicated that over 50 per cent of those surveyed had stalled cases at Jordanian courts.

Meanwhile, 33 per cent of the surveyed individuals said they suffered “from dangers and difficulties, at least once, when they tried to solve a problem within the justice system”. 

The findings were announced during the launch of a report titled “Justice Needs and Satisfaction in Jordan: Legal problems in daily life” on Monday. 

The study, which surveyed 6,000 people across Jordan including 600 Syrian refugees, was conducted by The Hague Institute for Innovation of Law (HiiL) in cooperation with The Arab Renaissance Organisation for Democracy and Development (ARDD) and supported by the foreign ministry of The Netherlands.

The study mapped out the bottom-up justice needs in Jordan and provided evidence about people’s experiences with the costs of accessing justice, the quality of procedures and its accompanying results.

“A large percentage of surveyed people said that legal proceedings in Jordan take too long and that they fail to provide solutions to their problems, with many saying that they have had cases that lasted four years in courts,” CEO of HiiL Sam Muller told members of the gathering.

Muller, who highlighted some of the findings of the report, stated that “there is a gap between the demand and delivery of legal services and advice”. 

“Residents address legal problems with formal and informal solutions, often involving family members, neighbours, and direct contact with the other party,” Muller noted.

He added that the findings of the report also indicated that people want a fairer and more inclusive justice process. 

“What is important to me is that we now have the voices of 6,000 users of the justice system and the key challenge is to see to which extent the leaders of the justice system will be able to commit to the demands formulated,” Muller said.

The CEO said that he is hopeful that coalitions will be formed to improve justice services in Jordan and that “new innovative ways will be developed to open the door for people to try to resolve their legal problems peacefully without resorting to courts”.

ARDD conducted over 30 in-depth qualitative interviews with a diverse selection of Jordanian residents from a range of backgrounds, contexts, and situations, said ARDD CEO Samar Muhareb. 

“ARDD explored residents’ experiences with financial, criminal, neighbour and family status legal cases, among other focus areas, getting insight into the legal system of Jordan, as experienced by the people,” Muhareb told the gathering. 

Regarding the Syrian refugees who live in urban areas, Muhareb said the study showed that they encountered legal problems concerning “their most basic human needs such as secure shelters, decent income, official identification documents and good education for their children”.

“The majority of the refugees who face legal issues, act on resolving them with their own resources, although mostly limited,” Muharen explained.

Having structured resources for resolving legal problems in a fair manner is “rare for refugees”, she added.  

“This leads to a very high proportion of legal problems remaining unresolved, which increases the vulnerability of the Syrian refugees,” Muhareb added.

Earlier in the day, the deputy president of the Cassation Court, Judge Naji Zu’bi, said that the justice system in Jordan and elsewhere “is not very comforting when it comes to responding to people’s demands”.

“I feel that the justice system is going through a crisis and I believe we need to be constantly revising our legislation to get rid of what is not appropriate,” Zu’bi said.

Zu’bi added that people need to be continuously educated about their legal rights and that they should understand that “religion does not only revolve around praying and fasting”.

Senator Sawsan Majali agreed with Judge Zu’bi, saying the change should be holistic and that “we should educate people to be aware of their legal rights because many remain ignorant, trying to solve their problems without consulting appropriate legal solutions”.

Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands Barbara Joziasse stressed the importance of the study as it looked at the “everyday need of people in Jordan”.

She added that one of the important findings of the study was that “information sharing and awareness is actually sometimes more efficient than going to court. It is easier to work on mediation instead of going through very long and expensive court procedures,” the Dutch ambassador added.   

AMMAN — HRH Prince Feisal, special assistant of the chairman of the Joint Chiefs-of-Staff, on Monday attended a night drill carried out by a Royal Air Force unit, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The prince listened to a briefing by the drill’s commander about the procedures taken for the implementation, which included field training, intrusions and air evacuation, with the support of helicopters.

The drill was attended by the Royal Jordanian Air Force Acting Commander and a number of senior officers in the air force.

AMMAN — Civil Defence Department (CDD) Director Maj. Gen. Mustafa Bazaiah on Monday met with Director of Civil Protection and Crisis Management in France Jacques Witkowski, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. French Ambassador to Jordan David Bertolotti attended the meeting.

They discussed cooperation between the two countries’ civil defence and civil protection systems and discussed the possibility of France’s support to establish a fire station in Aqaba to deal with ship fires.

Witkowski affirmed the French Civil Protection’s keenness to support the CDD personnel and enable them to improve their performance. The French ambassador commended the depth of the relations between the two countries in various fields. Maj. Gen Bazaiah praised France for its constant support to Jordan’s CDD.

On the sidelines of the visit, Bazaiah and his French counterpart signed a memorandum of understanding which included the mechanism for implementing the Jordanian-French agreement in the field of civil protection and civil defence.

AMMAN — The government and the European Union (EU) on Monday launched “Developing Jordan’s Economic Facilities Initiative”,  jointly funded by the EU, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The project aims at supporting over 160 small and medium facilities, emerging companies and entrepreneurs, in order to stimulate sustainable economic growth and to increase job opportunities for Jordanians.

The report mentioned that the EU is offering 6 million Euros for the project since it is an important component of a wider programme to develop the private sector for supporting the public budget with an amount of 55 million euros. The project will support the implementation of a comprehensive reform campaign within the fields of operation, trade, investment and small businesses.

AMMAN — The number of employees in the public and the private sectors have reached around 1.135 million in 2015, males accounted for 75 per cent and 24 per cent for females of the total number, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Monday.

According to a report issued by the Department of Statistics, which measures the conditions of employees in both sectors, except for agriculture, security, and informal sectors, the report mentioned that the average monthly salary for male employees in the entire public sector has reached JD601, compared to JD452 in the private sector in 2015.

As for female employees, it reached JD518 in the public sector compared JD382 in the private sector. The report also mentioned that the private sector is the main driver for employment in the labour market, consisting of 70 per cent.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah and visiting Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al Abadi on Sunday discussed ties between the two countries, as the eastern neighbour is gearing up for a post-Daesh rebuild drive.

A Royal Court statement said that His Majesty and Abadi held a one-on-one meeting that was followed by an expanded session of talks attended by senior officials from both sides, including Prime Minister Hani Mulki.

King Abdullah, who congratulated Baghdad for a series of victories in the war against the Daesh terror group, renewed Jordan’s full support for Iraq as it endeavours to consolidate its security, territorial integrity and coherence of its people, in line with the country’s constitution. 

He said that building a safe, stable and unified Iraq is a pillar of regional security, vowing that Jordan places all its capabilities at the hands of Iraq to help the country evolve into a prosperous state that meets the needs of its people and strengthen pan-Arab positions. 

For his part, Abadi briefed His Majesty on the “significant victories the Iraqi army made in the fight against Daesh terrorist gang and Iraq’s vision for the future of the region, which is based on development and security instead of rifts and wars”.

Meanwhile, Mulki met separately with his Iraqi counterpart over bilateral ties and regional developments, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

Mulki also congratulated the Iraqi leader for the success in their anti-terror fight and pledged full support for Iraq.

The two officials discussed the reopening of the Turaibil border crossing after three years of closure and went over the list of Jordanian products that Amman has requested to be exempted from a 30 per cent levy imposed by Baghdad on imported commodities after the Jordanian side completed compiling the list, which will be submitted to technical committees for endorsement.

The two sides also discussed progress in a plan to extend an oil pipe from Basra in Iraq to Jordan’s Aqaba Port. 

Abadi returned home after concluding the several-hour visit.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday held a meeting at Al Husseiniya Palace that focused on the latest developments related to the Palestinian issue, according to the Royal Court.

The meeting touched on the reconciliation agreement in Cairo between Palestinians, where the King stressed Jordan's support for this agreement, which, he said, would augment the unity of Palestinians.

His Majesty said that the reconciliation is an important step towards resuming the peace process with the Israeli side to achieve a solution based on two states with an independent Palestinian state within the lines of June 4, 1967, with Eastern Jerusalem as its capital.

The King and the president also discussed the US' role in light of US President Donald Trump's commitment to working on peace between the two sides.

The meeting came as a follow up by Jordan and the Palestinians on the situation in Jerusalem and efforts to keep the status quo in the holy city intact.

In this regard, the King stressed that Jordan, as the custodian of Christian and Muslim holy places in Jerusalem, would carry on performing its historical role in protecting the shrines.

During the meeting, the King and the president reviewed the latest regional developments and efforts to end regional crises.

For his part, Abbas commended Jordan for its active role in advocating the Palestinian cause.

Royal Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh, Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi and King’s Office Director Jafar Hassan attended the meeting.