US ambassador launches bi-national higher education cooperation project

AMMAN — US Ambassador to Jordan Henry Wooster, alongside representatives from renowned US and Jordanian universities, officially launched the “RAWABIT” Bi-national Higher Education Cooperation Network project at a ceremony hosted by one of the Crown Prince foundation initiatives, Al Hussein Technical University, on Monday.

RAWABIT (meaning “Connections” in Arabic) will foster collaboration and information-sharing among Jordanian and US universities, vocational and technical schools and professional training academies, to enhance institutional capacity and promote university-industry partnerships, a statement from the US embassy in Amman said.

The ambassador underscored the importance of expanding and diversifying higher education partnership between the US and Jordan. Expressing appreciation for the collaborative efforts and progressive vision demonstrated by the RAWABIT project, Wooster said, “The universities and educational institutions represented in this room today, and those that will inevitably join us in the future, are brought together by a common cause, to help build up the next generation of Jordanians to deliver prosperity to their country, and I want you to know that the United States — both its government and academia — stands with you.” 

The RAWABIT project, funded by the US State Department and implemented by the Jordanian-American Commission for Educational Exchange, aims to establish an open and transparent environment for information exchange and collegiality among institutions of higher education, administrators, faculty, staff and researchers from both countries, and to encourage more mobility. Recognising that university is not the only path to economic opportunity, RAWABIT aims to facilitate increased cooperation in all forms of higher and post-secondary education, to bridge the education-to-employment gap and improve economic outcomes for all Jordanians.