Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - The Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation on Sunday signed a grant agreement, worth €20 million, offered from the German government through the German Development Bank (KfW) to finance the first phase of the program of promotion of Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET).

The agreement was signed on behalf of the government by Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Dr. Wissam Rabadi, Director of the German Development Bank Office in Jordan Christian Schaub, and President of Al-Hussein Technical University (HTU) Dr. Labib Khadra, on behalf of the implementing agency, and in presence of the Executive Director of the Crown Prince Foundation, Dr. Tamam Mango.

The project aims to provide high quality TVET programs relevant to the labor market and focuses on education and training through practical application in close cooperation with the private sector, in a bid to increase the employability of TVET graduates.

In a statement, the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation said the project will be managed and implemented by the HTU and will serve as a "driver of change" in TVET reform. These programs will also be accredited under national accreditation regulations as well as international accreditation agencies (eg. German accreditation).

According to the statement, plans are underway to build a technical training college for Al-Hussein Technical University in Amman, and will be provided with all necessary equipment. Two vocational training centers of the Vocational Training Corporation in the city of Irbid will be managed by Al-Hussein Technical University to upgrade the level of programs, through a comprehensive rehabilitation of the infrastructure with the necessary equipment.

More vocational training institutes will be included in the coming stages, after verifying the success of the first stage to cover all regions of the Kingdom, the statement pointed out.

During the signing ceremony, Rabadi thanked Germany for its continuous support to Jordan's vital sectors such as water, sanitation, education and other priority sectors.

Rabadi also praised the German government for providing additional support to the Kingdom, adding Germany is one of Jordan's most important partners in the development and reform process.

For her part, German Ambassador in Amman Birgitta Siefker-Eberle stressed the "deep-rooted" relations between the two friendly countries, expressing her country's readiness to continue supporting Jordan, especially with regard to priority sectors.