Symposium affirms role of civil society organisations in development

AMMAN — Participants of a symposium agreed unanimously on the importance of the role of civil society organisations in development and raising awareness about rights and laws, as well as in economic and social areas.

During a virtual session organised by the Phenix Centre for Economic and Informatics Studies, attendees said that the role of these organisations is not only restricted to providing services, but also includes analysis of policies and legislations as well as spreading awareness in various fields. 

They also called for providing the organisations greater freedom to reach communities in need of awareness, empowerment and development, according to a statement made available to The Jordan Times.  

Amina Al Zoubi, president of the Jordanian Women's Union, highlighted the organisations’ efforts towards analysing legislations that include discrimination against women and bringing forward several proposals and campaigns to amend laws.

Jordan still needs more civil organisations, as there are no more than 6,000 centres across the Kingdom, including associations and NGOs and unions, Ahmed Awad, head of the Phenix Centre for Economic Studies said. 

He noted that several countries whose populations are less than Jordan’s have tens of thousands of civil society organisations, at a rate of one organisation for 200-400 people, while the rate in Jordan is an organisation for each 2,000 people.