EU-funded project “EU support to Jordanian Democratic Institutions &  Development (EU JDID) held its first steering committee meeting session for component 3 “Support to Political Parties System” on Sunday, 11th of September, 2017 at the Ministry of Parliamentary and Political Affairs (MoPPA) premises. 

 

The meeting is aimed to provide guidance and quality assurance on the main directions of the action and to approve the annual work plans and annual reports under each component. His Excellency Eng. Bakr Abbadi, Secretary General of MoPPA was present along with Dr. Ahmad Ajarmeh , Head of International Cooperation, MoPPA, Mr. Gonzalo Jorro Martinez, Programme Manager for Democratic Governance and Mr. Michael Steffens, EU Delegation to Jordan, Mr. Fabio Bargiacchi, Executive Director, ECES and Mr. Said Sandiki, Project Director, ECES, Jordanian Democratic Institutions & Development in Jordan.

 

The meeting was inaugurated by the Secretary-General of MoPPA, HE Eng. Baker Al Abadi, who provided a briefing about the collaboration with the EU and the importance of developing a proper plan of the project upon the ministry’s needs and proposed activities. His Excellency reaffirmed the importance of supporting the political party system and inclusive political dialogue in order to contribute to democratic governance in Jordan. His Excellency also highlighted the importance of strengthening the capacities of political parties especially in terms of building coalitions, and to ensure targeted support to people with special needs and women involved in politics.

 

Mr. Gonzalo Jorro Martinez, Programme Manager for Democratic Governance – EU Delegation to Jordan claimed that the main purpose of the project is to support Jordan’s reform process towards consolidation of deep democracy and promote inclusiveness of national policy and decision-making process. “The current project with political parties is the first one to be implemented in direct cooperation and coordination with MoPPA,” added Mr. Martinez. 

 

Dr. Ahmad Ajarmeh, the Head of the International Cooperation Unit, expressed his gratitude to the well-organized cooperation between the Ministry and the EU funded project. “The project was very well planned and closely coordinated by the two parties, not only in terms of planning the activities but also with the recruitment of the staff,” he added. 

 

The activities, developed in close collaboration with MoPPA, were presented by Mr. Said Sandiki, the Project Director, for discussions and comments by the two parties. A final form of activities was agreed on, and the Secretary-General trusts that the close coordination between the EU in Jordan & MoPPA will lead to successful and fruitful results. 

 

The EU Funded Project “EU Support to Jordanian Democratic Institutions & Development (EU-JDID)” is part of the broader Programme “Enhanced Support to Democratic Governance in Jordan”. EU JDID which is composed of four components is managed by two entities, a consortium which is led by ECES and includes four European non-profit organisations: European Partnership for Democracy (EPD), Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WfD), Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy (NIMD) and French Agency for Media Cooperation (CFI), and the fourth components which is managed by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID)