Day: December 8, 2022

Amman, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Maj. Gen. Yousef Huneiti on Thursday met with Chief of the Hellenic Air Force General Staff (HAFGS), Lieutenant General Themistoklis Bourolias.

The meeting covered aspects of cooperation and joint coordination in the various military, operational, training and logistical fields in order to achieve the desired goals to serve the armed forces of the two friendly countries.

Senior officers of the Jordan Armed Forces – the Arab Army (JAF) attended the meeting.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation, Zeina Toukan met Thursday with World Bank Vice President for Middle East and North Africa, Ferid Belhaj.

In the meeting, Toukan briefed Belhaj on progress of preparing priorities of the executive program for the 2023-2025 economic modernization vision and the implementation of the public sector modernization roadmap.

In the meeting, the World Bank delegation was briefed on the features of the priorities within the executive program and the importance of funding its programs and projects in water, energy, and green investments sectors by the World Bank, as well as implementing the public sector modernization roadmap.

For his part, Belhaj underlined the bank’s continued support for Jordan in various fields, and contribution to funding initiatives and programs within Jordan’s economic and administrative modernization plans, with the aim of promoting economic growth and increasing employment opportunities.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman, The Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation signed Thursday Memorandums of Understanding (MoU) for a 15 billion JPY ($110 million) soft loan provided by the Japanese government to support the general budget.

This loan is as part of Japanese government’s pledges to the Jordanian government at the 2019 London Conference to provide total financing in the form of soft loans worth $300 million during 2021-2023.

The MoUs were signed by Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Zeina Toukan, Ambassador of Japan to Jordan, Jiro Okuyama, and Vice President of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Ando Naoki from the headquarters in Tokyo.

The loan, which aims to provide support for the general budget, will be channeled to develop the energy sector, including the sustainability of the electricity supply and improving the sector governance. It also aims to contribute to the development of the national strategy for electric transmission, and the requirements of technical and advisory studies related to regional electricity interconnection in the sector, according to a ministry statement.

On the sidelines of the signing ceremony, a meeting was held with Japanese officials, during which they were briefed on key priorities within the executive program of the 2023-2025 vision in various sectors. The meeting also covered cooperation and common interests, and the importance of continuing research and discussion between the two sides to present priorities and projects that will be included in the program and ways to provide appropriate support for their implementation within specified time frames, in addition to urging the Japanese side to support a group of priority development projects in the tourism and energy sectors that were previously submitted.

For his part, Ambassador Okuyama said that offering this loan comes in light of Japan’s appreciation for the Jordanian government’s comprehensive reform efforts made, which include the vision of economic modernization launched by His Majesty King Abdullah in June entitled “A Better Future.”

In turn, JICA’s Vice President lauded the historical relations between Jordan and Japan, highlighting the importance of this loan in meeting the financing needs for the fiscal year 2022 budget in Jordan.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman, Jordan participated in Abu Dhabi International Food Exhibition (ADIFE) and Abu Dhabi Date Palm Exhibition 2022, which kicked off in the UAE capital from December 6-8.

In a statement, General Manager of Jordanian Palestinian Agriculture Products Marketing Co. (JPACO), Aladdin Abu Khair, said participation helped the company to market its products, contact with key sales centers in the Arab Gulf region and the world, display local industries, coordinate future meetings and contracts to promote Jordanian and Palestinian agricultural crops.

JPACO’s presence is part of its first steps to attend a number of international exhibitions in Europe, Asia and the Arab Gulf region, he said.

Jordan Dates Association (JODA) held a pavilion that featured 9 farms and large companies, which showcased their dates products over a 3- day period.

JODA president, Anwar Haddad, noted continued participation in this festival reflects its “remarkable” impact on marketing Medjool date product at the regional and international levels.

For his part, Head of Palm Farmers Cooperative Association (PFCA), Raed Sa’ida, said the association’s pavilion featured brought together a number of farmers from Jordan Valley, adding that these fairs are an opportunity to market the local product and contact with the key buyers across the world.

Meanwhile, Ministry of Agriculture’s media spokesperson, Lorence Majali, said the ministry, through the National Plan for Sustainable Agriculture, is trying to enhance participation of Jordan’s agricultural sector to display the local product to reach new markets, which would update its future marketing plan.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman, The Royal Naval Force (RNF) on Thursday thwarted an attempt to infiltrate and smuggle a “large” quantity of narcotics through Jordanian territorial waters.

In a statement, an official military source at General Command of Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF) – the Arab Army said the attempt was foiled after Maritime Operations Center monitored a person attempting to swim using a rubber tube to breach Jordanian territorial waters.

The Naval Force rapid response boats promptly moved to the site and the infiltrator was arrested with a quantity of narcotics in his possession, the source said.

After searching the intruder and the rubber tube, 285 palm-sized sheets of hashish and 4.5 kilograms of marijuana were seized and were transferred to the competent authorities, the source added.

The source emphasized that Jordanian naval forces will deal “robustly and firmly” with any attempt to infiltrate or smuggle drugs through the Kingdom’s maritime borders and stop breaches aimed to tamper with Jordan’s national security.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman, Minister of Social Development, Wafaa Bani Mustafa, on Thursday discussed with Cypriot Minister of Social Welfare, Anastasia Anthousi, joint cooperation in the social care field and ways to benefit from Cypriot expertise in this area.

Speaking at the meeting, Bani Mustafa said Jordan has a 10-year strategy that focuses on finding solutions for accommodation centers, in a bid to better integrate people with disabilities into their households and communities, stressing that Ministry of Social Development’s facilities are ready and organized to provide all means of care for beneficiaries.

Noting allocations in Jordan’s general budget for persons with disabilities’ affairs, she highlighted the importance of media and educational curricula role in spreading awareness about this group’s needs and stressed the need for their inclusion in society.

Bani Mustafa said Gendered Strategy in Jordan’s Economic Modernization Vision (EMV) calls on taking initiatives in multiple areas, especially role of providing adequate care for children in enhancing economic participation.

The ministry is teaming up with partners to increase nurseries’ role, to help working women find job opportunities to face economic challenges, she said.

For her part, Anthousi said Cyprus provides incentives to institutions to better integrate people with disabilities into their communities, and offers psychological and medical care to this group.

The Cypriot minister noted this group needs care, attention and support, to achieve their full integration into their local communities, through the joint responsibility of government institutions and society.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Amman, The Cultural Attaché at the Bahraini Embassy in Jordan announced the start of submitting nominations for UNESCO King Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa Prize 2022 for Use of ICT in Education under the theme: “Use of Public Platforms to Ensure Inclusive Access to Digital Education Content”.

In a press statement issued by the attaché on Thursday, UNESCO has set Monday, corresponding to January 23, as the deadline for accepting candidatures online.

To obtain more award-driven information and nominations and selection process, applicants can learn about all related details at the prize’s official webpage via the UNESCO website: http://on.unesco.org/aboutictprize.

Source: Jordan News Agency

Aqaba, His Majesty King Abdullah, accompanied by His Royal Highness Crown Prince Al Hussein bin Abdullah II, on Wednesday via teleconference, followed up on the progress made on the Aqaba Marine Park project.

During the meeting of the international honorary advisory board formed to supervise the Aqaba Marine Park project, King Abdullah was briefed by Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority Chief Commissioner Nayef Bakhit on recent developments and plans for the upcoming period.

The project aims to preserve coral reefs, marine life, and biodiversity in the Gulf of Aqaba and the Red Sea, in line with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change.

The project entails establishing a marine reserve, an aquarium, ecotourism amenities, and scientific research facilities to support marine biodiversity, sustainable fishing, and assess the impact of future desalination projects.

The advisory board, formed last year, groups world renowned marine scientists and scholars, climate change and sustainable development experts, as well as environmentalists and explorers, on a voluntary basis to provide strategic insights for Jordan’s efforts to attract support for developing the Aqaba Marine Park.

Director of the Office of His Majesty Jafar Hassan, Tourism Minister Nayef Al Fayez, and Environment Minister Muawieh Radaideh attended the meeting.

Source: Jordan News Agency