Italy announces 800,000 EUR for strengthening the education system in Jordan in partnership with UNESCO and the Ministry of Education
Amman: The Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) has confirmed the contribution of 800,000 EUR granted by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation to the Multi-Partner Trust Fund (MPTF) in support of the “System Strengthening Partnership with Jordan’s Ministry of Education” (SSP) programme, implemented by UNESCO, under the leadership of the Ministry of Education.
The SSP is a three-year programme (2019-2022), supporting the Ministry of Education (MoE)’s Education Strategic Plan (ESP), focusing on system strengthening as one of the core domains of the ESP. With their contribution, Italy joins Canada as the second signatory to this MPTF, embodying the spirit of partnership, coordination and aid effectiveness, in support of Jordan’s education sector. Canada’s pivotal role as the first donor to the MPTF has paved the way for the SSP programme to support a stronger and more resilient education ecosystem in Jordan. In-kind support is also being provided by Norway (through the NORCAP mechanism) with the provision of several senior experts deployed to UNESCO within the MoE. Additional development partners and financial support are anticipated in 2020.
Today, UNESCO and the Italian Embassy in Amman held a signing ceremony at the Ministry of Education in support of the Multi Partner Trust Fund. Italy’s contribution through AICS demonstrates the shared goal of providing quality education for all in Jordan, through effective and constructive coordination with the Ministry of Education.
H.E. Dr. Tayseer Al-Nueimi, Minister of Education, chaired the ceremony, confirming his strong commitment to the partnership. “We thank you and your countries for your support to Jordan at large and to the Ministry of Education in particular. We really appreciate your support, particularly to sustain and improve the institutional capacity of the Ministry of Education at many forms especially in data collection, data streaming, generating indicators and dashboards, in addition to starting to put in place the culture of policy driven schemes at the Ministry of Education.”
The Ambassador of Italy to Jordan, H.E. Mr. Fabio Cassese delivered remarks saying, “The contribution of 800 000 Euros granted by Italy to the Multi-Partner Trust Fund has the primary purpose of supporting Jordan in implementing its National Strategic Plan for the Education Sector, in order to increase the access and quality of education for all boys and girls in Jordan. Our contribution today crucially complements the Education Sector Budget Support funded by Italy through a soft loan worth 85 million Euros, showing once more that Italy has a strong commitment towards Jordan in strengthening its partnership to address human resources development.”
Italy’s commitment to strengthening the MoE’s planning capacities during the COVID-19 crisis has been evident through its support of the SSP, which will assist the Ministry in reviewing its Education Strategic Plan. This serves to further mainstream crisis-sensitive planning during the global pandemic, while upholding the principles, goals and targets of equity and equality. On the occasion of the signing ceremony, the Director of the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) in Amman, Mr. Michele Morana, has highlighted that “effective and constructive coordination with the Ministry of Education will be strengthened thanks to the presence of AICS in Amman”.
UNESCO Representative to Jordan, Ms. Costanza Farina stated, “Today’s signing ceremony is representative of our collective efforts as an international community, aligned to provide efficient and effective support to the Ministry during these challenging times. It is of great significance to UNESCO to have been able to count on a flexible and focused pooled funding mechanism to implement this 3-year programme, demonstrating a unity of purpose, and a strong commitment to the principles of good donorship, while we continue to engage strategically and sustainably with the Ministry of Education.”
Through this multi-year programme initiated in mid-2019, UNESCO is fostering the core functions of the MoE in planning and budgeting, monitoring and reporting, research and evaluation, data and information management, as well as coordination and partnership.
The programme also builds on the European Union’s previous support to the development of the Education Management Information System (EMIS), which will continue to be supported as a key component of the MPTF programme through the provision of specialized technical support to the MoE to reinforce their capacity to maintain, manage and utilize EMIS for evidence-based policy formulation.
The programme contributes directly to the realization of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and Sustainable Development Goals 4 and 5 in particular, which focus on quality education and gender equality.
In attendance at the ceremony were H.E. Ms. Donica Pottie, Ambassador of Canada to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, H.E. Ms. Tone Aller, Ambassador of Norway to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and Iraq, and H.E. Ms. Maria Hadjitheodosiou, Ambassador and Head of the European Union Delegation to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.
From the MoE, the Secretary General for Administrative and Financial Affairs, Dr. Najwa Qubeilat and the Secretary General for Educational Affairs Dr. Nawwaf Al-Ajarmeh were also in attendance, alongside the Head of the Department of Planning, Dr. Youssef Abushaar, the Head of the Development Coordination Unit, Ms. Lama Al-Natour and the Director of the Queen Rania Center, Engineer Ruba Al-Omari.