Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - The Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation signed with the KfW Development Bank in Amman a financing agreement for the amount of euro 20 million.

The deal was signed by Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Imad fakhoury and Director of KfW Development Bank in Amman Florian Rabe, in response to pledges made at the London Conference in February 2016 in respect of the Jordanian Government's request for support to the public school system.

These grant funds will be used to finance salaries needed for the operation of "double-shift" schools in the school year 2016/17, thus supporting the Ministry of Education in providing and extending access of Syrian refugee children to formal education in Jordan.

Under the leadership of the Ministry of Education, and in combination with financial contributions from other donors, up to 190,000 refugee children will thus be able to attend schools. Furthermore, additional employment opportunities for Jordanian teachers and administrative staff will be created in the education sector.

Fakhoury said in a press statement following the signing ceremony that Germany had pledges to provide 300 million euros to Jordan this year including 100 million in the form of humanitarian aid to the refugees through UN organizations, and 200 million as an aid to support communities hosting the refugees.

He thanked the German government for its support to Jordan in its quest to turn the Syrian crisis from a challenge into an economic opportunity.

German Ambassador Siefker-Eberle commended the Government of Jordan for the bold steps taken in recent months, which aim at ensuring that soon every child in Jordan will have the opportunity to attend school.

The funds are part of extraordinary grant commitments made available by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development under its new "Partnership for Prospects Initiative" launched at the London conference.