topic Ministry

Jordan: Building bridges through cooperation in higher education

Political framework for scientific and technological cooperation

Cooperation in science and research with Jordan, which is a priority country for the BMBF, is based on the bilateral agreement on cultural cooperation of 1981, the cooperation agreement between the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft and the Royal Society of Jordan (concluded in March 2002), and other agreements, for example those concluded at EU level within the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP).

In July 2009, the ministers responsible for higher education agreed to continue providing active political, scientific and financial support for the German-Jordanian University (GJU).

Key areas of cooperation

In order to tackle the shortage of water and find ways of using this scarce resource more effectively, the BMBF is working together closely with Jordan in large-scale regional water projects. They have the aim of finding strategies for managing available water resources in a sustainable way. One of the largest bilateral and multilateral projects of this kind is GLOWA, which focuses on the effects of global change on the river Jordan.

The large-scale research facility SESAME is an important multidisciplinary centre of excellence. It pursues the aim of strengthening basic physics research and of expanding and disseminating high-level applied research that offers extensive research and qualification opportunities for scientists and top-class researchers in the entire region. The centrepiece of the project is the German synchrotron storage ring BESSY I. In addition to Jordan, the project's other partners include Egypt, Israel, Palestine and Turkey.

Highlights of bilateral cooperation

The German-Jordanian University (GJU), which was opened in 2005, offers an ideal platform for the establishment of a targeted research partnership in the region. It is modelled after German universities of applied sciences and offers practice-oriented courses, mainly in disciplines related to technology and engineering. Its hands-on approach is unusual for Jordan and contributes to the implementation of the national reform programme, which has the aim of adapting the country's training system to the needs of industry and enabling Jordan to join the global knowledge society.

In July 2009, the ministers responsible for higher education in both countries agreed to continue providing active political, scientific and financial support for the German-Jordanian University.

Germany's commitment to the GJU is closely linked to other policy areas: From a foreign-policy point of view, the GJU credibly reflects a dialogue-oriented policy that takes the interests of both countries into account. In a region with a growing, young population, education and research are the keys to economic, political and social stability.

Federal Minister Schavan travelled to Jordan in July 2008. She paid visits to the German-Jordanian University in Amman and the SESAME research facility in order to gain an insight into the latest developments in German-Jordanian cooperation in education and research.

Special activities of the BMBF's specialist Directorates-General and of the science and intermediary organizations

A further BMBF funding priority in the area of Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) is the interdisciplinary, multilateral research project SMART (Sustainable Management of Available Water Resources with Innovative Technologies) in the lower Jordan catchment basin. A total of 17 different partner organizations and institutions and three German companies are involved in this project: regulatory authorities, universities, research institutions, and water suppliers from Germany, Jordan, Israel and Palestine. The main aim of the SMART project is to develop transferable approaches for integrated water resources management in semi-arid regions. What sets this project apart is not only its scientific excellence, but also its great political significance for the region.

Jordan is also the first location for a new model of joint intercultural and interdisciplinary education of young German and Arab talent in the field of development cooperation. The third intake of Arab and German students is currently completing the Master's degree programme in "Integrated Water Resource Management", which was developed by the Cologne University of Applied Sciences and the University of Jordan and leads to a joint German and Jordanian Master's degree. The degree programme is funded by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and coordinated by the DAAD.

There are other multilateral cooperation projects, for example between the Technical University of Braunschweig, the Al-Balqa Applied University, the University of Jordan, and partners from France and the UK. They focus on the field of marine research and on the development of a Middle Eastern network to support an interdisciplinary approach to mechatronics, which is very important for industry.