‘Jordanian-Danish ties could be much closer’

The headline is maybe a little to gloomy but this was what Jordan Times decided to use for an interview in today’s paper.Some days ago I was approached by Mohammad Ghazal, who is one of JT’s young and dynamic reporters and he asked me for an interview. The interview revolves around a lot of different bilateral issues – not least bilateral trade and cooperation.

The painting on the photo is painted by a Danish rock musician and artist Johnny Madsen. Check out his website - he paints some awesome paintings, mostly portraying the audience at his rock concerts. I was very happy when I unwrapped his painting while moving in at the Embassy last September. I had suggested one of his paintings for my office but I was told that the Ministry was not able to get hold of one since everything was sold out. But somehow and to my big and happy surprise the Johnny Madsen Gallery managed to find this colourful painting for the embassy.

Jordan Times, 23 October 2008. 

‘Jordanian-Danish ties could be much closer’

Photo by Mohammed Ghazal, Jordan Times

By Mohammad Ghazal

AMMAN – Denmark is committed to further enhancing ties with Jordan in various sectors and supporting programmes and projects that directly relate to people in the Kingdom, according to Danish Ambassador in Amman Thomas Lund-Sorensen.

“Jordanian-Danish ties could be much closer. We probably do not know enough about each other. We have many things in common. We have almost the same number of population. We have no raw materials except brainpower. We have to live from the skills of our people. So I think we share a lot of experiences and can bolster cooperation,” the Danish envoy told The Jordan Times in a recent interview.

Official diplomatic ties between the two countries were established in 1958, according to the Danish diplomat, who noted that as far back as the 1920s there were Danish archaeologists working with Jordanian colleagues at the Mount Nebo site.

The ambassador, who stressed that the bilateral trade volume is “much too low”, called on Jordanian businesspeople to explore potential sectors where they can boost cooperation with their Danish counterparts.

The annual average of Danish exports to Jordan stands at about $50 million, while imports amount to around $2 million.

The Kingdom mainly imports pharmaceuticals, dairy products, juices, machinery and steel from Denmark, while it exports pharmaceuticals, vegetables and nuts to the Scandinavian country.

Noting that the establishment of the Danish embassy in September last year was the best sign of enhanced relations between the two countries, Lund-Sorensen voiced hope for further cooperation between Jordanian and Danish businesspeople to boost the trade volume.

“Denmark is a country that is not scared of globalisation. We try to outsource a lot of our production in areas where production is less costly but still of quality, and this is one of the areas where Jordan has something to offer,” he said.

“But what is very important is that Jordanian businesspeople themselves look for what they can offer to the Danish market and I am not just talking about vegetables and nuts. I am talking about something more substantial,” the ambassador said.

“What is important to us is high quality pharmaceuticals at the lowest possible price and this is actually where Jordan might have a possibility to increase exports,” he said.

During the interview, the diplomat also noted that Denmark has been involved in supporting projects in Jordan in areas related to good governance, directly addressing issues related to people such as family protection and preventing violence against women and children.

Denmark also assisted Jordan in drawing up the law on the Ombudsman Bureau, an independent organisation established in April to review complaints lodged against any decision or procedure by official institutions, through extending and exchanging expertise.

He added that his country is now moving towards supporting programmes related to schools and universities, and decentralisation of government and municipalities.

“At this embassy we try to focus on enhancing the ties between young Jordanians and their Danish counterparts. We want to reach out to communities where we are not well-known and we do that by implementing different types of projects and programmes,” the ambassador said.

“It is very important to us that our cooperation takes place between peoples and not only between governments… We always try to get our NGOs and people to be involved with the Jordanian side,” he stressed.

One area where Jordanian and Danish businesspeople can cooperate is the energy sector, according to the diplomat.

“The time is really right for cooperation in the energy sector and energy-saving devices. Jordan has decided on a new energy strategy that will move energy production from fossil fuels to locally produced renewable energy and since Denmark is the world’s best in renewable energy I think that it is obvious there is a great potential for cooperation here,” he said.

“This year there will be high demand for any item that will reduce the cost of heating and consumption of electricity after Jordan lifted subsidies on fuel derivatives. Energy conservation is one of the areas Denmark is very good at,” Lund-Sorensen reiterated.

“Since 1980 our consumption of energy has been stable, which means zero per cent growth, while at the same time our gross national product has grown 75 per cent. That is totally uncommon among all other countries, where you normally link economic growth to an increase in energy consumption,” he said.

This is an area where Jordanian businesspeople should seize the moment and get in touch with Danish businesspeople,” he pointed out.

Turning to tourism, the diplomat said about 4,000 Danes visited the Kingdom during the first eight months of this year, a figure that is low compared to the number of those going to Egypt.

“Jordan has some of the things that Danish tourists look for… They look for nice weather, cultural activities and events…The weather and cultural activities are very good in Jordan… Soon when Aqaba and the Dead Sea are more developed, it will be a good occasion to advertise in order to attract more tourists from Denmark,” he said, noting that the absence of a direct flight between the countries affects the number of arrivals.

Asked about the boycott of Danish products following the publication of caricatures of the Prophet Mohammad in Danish newspapers he said: “The whole thing [cartoons] shows that we need to understand each other better. We need to understand the sensitivities of both our countries. We need to work on that.”

The boycott actually hurt some Jordanians, mostly importers of dairy products, the ambassador said, adding that there was no significant impact on other items.

“When I look at the trade figures, in 2008 we will probably be above what we exported in 2007. It seems so looking from the numbers we have so far… on the economic side, the boycott did not have any significant impact,” he said.

 

Weblog. The Danish ambassador began blogging in January 2008. “The purpose of ‘The Ambassador’s Weblog’ is twofold. Primarily, I wanted to start communicating through blogging in order to extend the embassy’s network to include what I believe is growing group of politically interested – and often younger – people,” the diplomat said. The focus is first and foremost to build a Jordanian virtual network but the blog also has many readers from Denmark, the US and Arab countries, he said. “Secondly, the blog is a good public diplomacy tool where I can explain my point of view in more detail than is normally possible when talking to the press. And publication is instantaneous – it is a medium that is available to me, whenever I need it,” the ambassador said.  The link is http://tholun.wordpress.com/

Jordanian Regional Training Center for Family Protection

During the conference on Family Protection and violence against children and women the Family Protection Department announced its plan to set up a regional training center in the Kingdom that would guide and strengthen other countries responses towards domestic abuse. I think this is a very positive outcome of the conference and our cooperation. Creating centers of excellence and disseminating best practices is a very constructive way of helping reducing violence in the family.

In an article in Jordan Times today the head of the Family Protection Department Colonel Zu’bi had the opportunity to explain how the FDP carry out its duties and evaluating the impact of their efforts. I think it is impressive. The statistical numbers suggest that a taboo is under way to be broken. Many more women and children are requesting the assistance of the FPD. It seems that the FDP have gained the trust of victims and potential victims. This is a very important step in reducing violence in the Family. I am proud that Jordan is offering her experience to other countries in this regard.

I have reproduced the article from Jordan Times in full because I think Colonel Zu’bi’s description of the working methods of the FPD is worth a read.

One point though. The article also mentions the disgusting phenomenon of child pornography on the Internet. Save the Children Denmark held a seminar on this issue in order to create awareness among local law enforcement, but apparently this is not – yet – considered a problem in the region. In my opinion it might be a bigger problem elsewhere – in a concerted effort Europe have been breaking up child pornography networks in the past years – but to say it is not an issue is probably to disregard the widespread use of computers also in the Arab world to surf for various kinds of porn.  

Here is the article:

Proposed training centre to guide, strengthen regional countries’ responses towards domestic abuse

By Dalya Dajani

AMMAN – The Kingdom plans to establish a regional training centre that would guide and strengthen other countries responses towards domestic abuse, a senior Family Protection Department (FPD) official said on Tuesday.

Colonel Mohammad Zu’bi, head of the FPD, told participants at the second regional conference on family protection from violence that the centre, to be launched next year, would be based on Jordan’s own 10-year experience in dealing with the problem.

“When the FPD first began its mission, most of the staff were uneasy and didn’t quite know how to approach the issue as they were fully aware of the cultural sensitivities involved,” said Zu’bi.

“However, it has been 10 years and the growth of the department’s experience and expertise, together with the support of other partner agencies, helped us overcome many challenges and we believe we can help others on that track,” he added.

The FPD yesterday screened a short film about its operations for conference participants who include police officers and child protection experts from 28 Arab countries.

FPD officials explained how the agency works closely with a range of governmental and nongovernmental partners to ensure that child and domestic abuse cases are handled appropriately, privately and with the least amount of stress to the victims.

Zu’bi said growing public awareness about the FPD had helped encourage thousands of child and domestic abuse victims to come forward, with 3,000 cases reported in 2007 compared to 300 in 1997.

The awareness efforts were supported by the print and broadcast media and extended to public and private schools and universities.

The FPD official said the public’s trust and confidence in the agency is a key factor behind its work in providing victims with assistance.

As part of its operations, the FPD responds to all reports or calls claiming or suspecting domestic or child abuse. It also has a hotline that does not have a phone number tracking device to ensure the privacy of callers, according to Zu’bi.

He noted that as a law enforcement agency, the FPD thoroughly investigates all claims before reaching a verdict.

“We examine each case and establish whether there is any truth to the claim and depending on the nature of the case, we try and help resolve some cases amicably while serious cases are referred to court,” Zu’bi said.

“However, women and children who clearly need protection are dealt with accordingly and placed in protective care,” he added.

The FPD official noted that they received 1,944 cases in the first nine months of this year, 1,200 of which were handled by social workers at the agency, while 500 were referred to court and 244 referred for administrative action by governors.

Zu’bi said they had also visited the Family Justice Centre in the US earlier this year to examine their experience, adding that the FPD was looking into establishing a similar centre in Jordan in the future with the partnership of the Jordan River Foundation and the Ministry of Social Development.

Two sessions scheduled on the conference agenda yesterday, the Arab League’s role in combating domestic abuse and a survey on mobile phone and the Internet use by Jordanian children, were not held.

Last year, Save the Children Denmark held a five-day training seminar for local law enforcement authorities on Internet-related sexual crimes against children.

Although the Kingdom does not suffer from such forms of child exploitation, the training was designed to enhance the PSD’s preparedness to address such issues should they arise.

The Internet, while a useful source of knowledge, education and recreation for millions of people, has also become an easy tool for criminal activity against children.

Millions of youngsters around the world are exploited online annually by sexual predators working from the privacy of their homes or organised networks and through the distribution of child pornography.

Child protection experts have noted their concerns about the growth of mobile and Internet access among children over recent years and the potential risks to which they are exposed. Some of these concerns include children’s exposure to age-inappropriate material that could shock or confuse them.

22 October 2008

Family Protection and Violence against Children and Women

As one of the initiatives under the umbrella of the Danish-Jordanian Partnership Program “Save the Children Denmark” and the Public Security Directorate / Family Protection Department are organizing a regional police conference in Amman these days. The purpose is to exchange lessons learned between various countries – mostly Arab – on protecting children and women from violence in the family. Jordan with its rather unique Family Protection Department is a frontrunner in dealing with this sensitive issue and is actively tackling an issue that in many circles is still considered a taboo.

The regional conference is one of the elements in this cooperation. The Danish government funded project is to take place during 2008-10 and has as immediate objectives to build the capacity of the Family Protection Department of the Public Security Directorate (FPD), as well as the staff of its partner institutions (including NGO’s) to 1) address cases of and to reduce domestic violence, sexual abuse and child abuse in Jordan, 2) provide victims of family violence with professional and caring service and 3) increase awareness amongst the population and in governmental and non-governmental organizations in Jordan and in the countries in the region as a whole, of the problems of family violence.

Some of the steps foreseen for the next two years might include:

• Establishment of two additional FPD Units in Ajloun (also covering Jerash) and Al- Mafraq.
• Capacity building of FPD and Partners to FPD dealing with cases of child abuse and violence in the family in Jordan
• Establishing a reliable baseline and monitoring framework for measuring impact on violence and abuse of children and women.
• Organisation and capacity building of FPD and Partners to train and help other Arab countries in the Region establish similar services/ prevention in the area of violence in the family in their respective countries.

It is an ambitious agenda, but the first phase of the project which took place in 2005-07 was very successful so this will hopefully also be the case for the next phase.

The embassy was invited to participate in the opening ceremony of the conference where I had the opportunity to give a speech, which I have copied below.

UPDATE I: Jordan Times and Al-Ghad (Arabic) published two articles on the conference.

Opening remarks by the Ambassador of Denmark, Mr. Thomas Fouad Lund-Sørensen at the Second Regional Police Conference on “Family Protection from Violence”, organized by the Public Security Department of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in cooperation with the Kingdom of Denmark,  Amman 20-21 October  2008:

Your Excellency Minister of Interior Eid Al Fayez

Major General Al Qadi,

Your Excellencies,

Ladies and Gentlemen

First of all I wish to extend a warm welcome to all of you to this Second Regional Police Conference on “Family Protection from violence”, organized by the Public Security Directorate of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in cooperation with the Kingdom of Denmark.

I also wish to express my sincere gratitude to Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah for her patronage of the conference.

The subject of this conference – family protection and violence against children and women – is a difficult and sensitive one. But it is extremely important for millions of families all over the world.

It is no coincidence that this conference takes place in Jordan. Over the years Jordan has made pioneering efforts in raising the awareness about family protection and by taking very concrete steps to train police officers, social workers and other professionals in the field of family protection. Denmark and Save the Children Denmark have been supporting these pioneering efforts, working closely with the Public Security Directorate and the Family Protection Department.  I wish to thank the Public Security Directorate and the Family Protection Department for their excellent cooperation and for hosting this important conference for the second time.

We are proud to work together in partnership in this important endeavour. It is one of the signs of Denmark’s close relations and strong friendship with Jordan. Denmark is eager and stands ready to strengthen and broaden relations even further. This is the reason behind the establishment of the first Danish Embassy in Jordan one year ago.  

Let me add a remark based on our experience of the past year. We – at the embassy – face from time to time difficult consular cases involving Danish citizens – often with a Jordanian or Palestinian background – that from some reason have been caught between two cultures and a different set of traditions and laws. In this respect we rely very much on the assistance from the PSD and the Family Protection Department. Their deep sense of cultural understanding has helped solving some very complicated situations. I wish to express my sincere thanks to the Jordanian police and I wish the best for our future bilateral cooperation. 

Excellencies, ladies and gentlemen,

Violence in the family – and abuse – including sexual abuse of children and women – is a global problem.

As parents, as family members, as citizens and as professionals – it must be our number one priority to do what we can to protect our children and our families from violence.

Children’s rights and family protection are complex and sensitive issues in most societies.

Quite often decision makers are reluctant to take the necessary measures to fully protect children and women. In many instances the family is considered a sacred entity and interference in family affairs is a taboo. Another reason might be that decision makers are not aware of effective ways to provide protection.

The challenge is to find ways to address issues of violence in the family – while respecting family values and the unity of the family.

Jordan is a pioneer in this region when it comes to reconciling those concerns. 

Under the patronage of Her Majesty the Queen, Jordan is systematically putting strategies for change into practise. With a holistic and human rights approach – and within a well defined cooperation model – the Public Security Directorate / Family Protection Department, the National Council for Family Affairs, Ministry for Social Development and their partner governmental and non-governmental organisations, are working together with dedication and high professionalism, to protect the child and the family from violence.  

For both Jordan and Denmark, the protection of children and women is a priority.

In 2005, project cooperation was established between the Public Security Directorate / Family Protection Department in Jordan and Save the Children Denmark.

Exchange of technical expertise between Danish and Jordanian experts has been an important element of this project. The cooperation involves police officers, social workers, forensic doctors and specialised NGO’s. We are now starting a new phase of the project. Focus will be on the regional approach – on the involvement of other relevant countries in the lessons learned from the first phase of the project.

Our fruitful cooperation will continue in the coming years. And in addition to addressing family violence directly, our cooperation will hopefully enhance dialogue between the nations of this region and Europe.

Dear participants from outside Jordan – we know that the protection of children – of families – is also a priority in your countries. We are very pleased to be given the opportunity to learn more about the initiatives taken in your respective countries, and to gain from your knowledge in the field of family protection.

In conclusion, I wish to thank the police officers and other professionals who are participating in this conference. You are really the key actors and the frontline soldiers in the struggle against abuse of children and family violence. Without your tireless efforts day and night – often in difficult circumstances – we will not succeed in our efforts. So this is your conference. We hope it will inspire you and that the proceedings and discussions can assist you in your important task. 

We are proud and honoured to be part of your pioneering efforts and I wish you a successful and beneficial conference.

Thank you for your attention.

Adnan Badran and Human Rights in Jordan

The National Center for Human Rights (NCHR) in Jordan has a new Chairman of the Board. Former Prime Minister Adnan Badran was nominated to this position a couple of weeks ago and he is already setting his mark on the institution. Badran was head of the – what many observers call the most reformist – government responsible for finalizing the National Agenda. It was also a very short-lived government that resigned in the days after the terrible Al Qaida bombing of three hotels in Amman in November 2005.

Yesterday, Adnan Badran gave an interview to Al-Ghad in Arabic. We at the embassy thought his statements quite interesting so we made a rough unofficial translation into English, that we have send to our Danish human rights partners. I noted that the chairman of NCHR highlighted two new ideas. First, he suggest that all draft laws should pass by NCHR before being put to Parliament in order to check for conformity with human rights. Secondly, he suggests that indicators for the Kingdoms compliance with international human rights (and its 30 founding principles I guess) should be established. 

As a general opinion I believe in involving civil society as much as possible in drafting new legislation. It will only make legislation better and more relevant. But you can to a certain degree discuss whether an non governmental organization should review draft law on its compliance with international obligations and law or whether this task should primarily be entrusted to a governmental institution (MoJ maybe). The government itself should bear the responsibility for this important issue as it forces administrators and legislators to make Human Rights a part of their mindset. 

A Jordanian based HR indicator might also be a good idea since it will create a basis for discussion of the level of human rights in Jordan that could be more constructive than the occasional shouting commotion between different parts of government and international NGOs we sometime witness. It will be interesting to see how these ideas are implemented.

Danish human rights organizations have been working with Jordanian NGOs and authorities for many years so they will definitely follow human rights developments within NCHR and the Jordanian society with great interest. Just a couple of months ago we launched a new project on torture in prisons together with the PSD, MoI, MoJ and a number of NGO’s.

The interview:

Al-Ghad Newspaper, Thursday, October 09, 2008

By: Farah Atiyyat and Mohammad Kayyali:

BADRAN: THE INTERNATIONAL CRITICISM OF HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN JORDAN IS CORRECT AND VIOLATIONS ARE INDIVIDUAL ACTIONS

CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF HUMAN RIGHTS CONFIRMS THAT POLITICAL PLURALISM IS NEEDED TO MAINTAIN SECURITY AND STABILITY.

AMENDMENTS TO THE LAW OF HUMAN RIGHTS CENTRE WILL MAINLY ON PROVISIONS OF THE QUESTIONING OF OFFICIAL INSTITUTIONS AND ACTIVATING THE ROLE OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES.

THE CENTRE’S ANNUAL REPORT TO BE ISSUED IN APRIL AND VIOLATIONS OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE KINGDOM INDIVIDUAL.

In the interview he gave to Al-Ghad, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Human Rights Centre, Dr. Adnan Badran, highlighted developments of the national strategy on Human Rights as well as intended procedures to modernize the HR Centre.

Dr. Badran has a vast expertise in human rights status in Jordan.  He has a number of engagements in scientific research fields, legal and political action.  He got his PhD degree from Michigan.  He was appointed as Prime Minister in 2005. 

Q: The Centre for Human Rights has recently started laying a new strategy to identity the center’s framework during the years to come.  How far you have moved in this regard and what are the main features of the anticipated strategy? 

A: HRC will execute the same policy based on its bylaw, which protect the rights of both individuals and establishments to ensure its conformity to the 30 principles of human rights announced in Geneva in 1948.

The Centre’s strategy will therefore be affected to a large extent by the 30 codes.  It begins by building up close relations with different ministries; interior, labour, justice, education and teaching, in order to translate the HR principles into a work plan and convert it into action.  Amendments also are to be conducted on the Centre’s bylaw to tighten questioning and controlling as well as to activate the role of the Board of Trustees which comprises 21 members through adding an article which mandates the members to attend the Centre’s sessions and change those members who frequently do not attend the sessions.  Despite that the Centre receives complaints from citizens and observes occurrences of human rights violations committed by different ministries and establishments, the centre’s bylaw does not include an article that compels different entities to answer the centre’s inquiries so as to ensure their commitments to Human Rights.

Jordan signed the International Agreement on Human Rights and therefore Jordan has to show a full commitment before the UN to maintain human rights and to make sure that the Jordanian legislations are in conformity with human rights.  So, we will act within the International law and the constitution.

The Centre’s verified strategy includes the establishment of sustainable committees to handle all subjects by the Board of Trustees and reinstruct the Centre so as to assign two commissioners under the General Commissioner; one to take care of the International law on Human Rights and the other to handle political freedoms. Then come the Centre’s units and some addition units to be established to make sure that HR codes are followed and executed properly as in spite of that we have special legislations for prisons in Jordan, some individuals violate the HR codes and act rudely with prisoners behind their superiors’ backs.  

I believe that the major violation is when law laid by the executive authority is sent off to the Lower House to be adopted.  Laws in my viewpoint should be sent to the HRC in order to process some articles which disagree to the International Law on Human Rights.

Q: You mentioned that it is necessary that the HRC has regularity role over ministries on human rights issues. Have you requested that bills are passed to the center before being referred to the Cabinet and that you have the capacity of law enforcement?

A: In the Centre’s law we have the capacity of controlling and questioning.  One of the objectives of the Law of the Centre for Human Rights to verify the observance of human rights in the Kingdom to address any abuses or violations, including the settlement or referral to the executive, legislative or judicial reference to stop them and eliminate of their impact.

The Center has the right to visit rehabilitation centres, detention centers and juvenile homes in accordance with due process and could open prisons or institutions without prior notice to inspect whether there were violations of human rights.

The Centre is committed to maintaining the confidentiality of information obtained without any defamations or excavations.

Q: You earlier announced that the centre had formed teams to study each of the principles of human rights to find out where the wrong place is and what evaluations will be done?

A: The Board of Trustees agreed on this. This new project will begin by the development of indicators and we will use the indicators developed in other countries just to compare to, then we will hold a national conference to discuss these indicators and we may call experts from the world and heads of boards of trustees of the national centers for Human Rights in the Arab world as well as institutions of civil society.

Q: What are the main features which the centre’s annual report will include?

A: We will continue to monitor the correction and rehabilitation centers, it would be a permanent article.  We will carry on monitoring political freedoms and civil society institutions, which have the full freedom, and we will continue to monitor freedom of the press and media and reforms in legislation or trying to go beyond principles of human rights. We will expand our actions in terms of education, health and labour rights and the right of housing and livelihoods and also the institutionalization of democratic freedoms, justice and in order to guarantee that all are equal.

Q: Through your observance and follow ups, have you noticed a decrease or a progress in the level of freedom during the this year?

A: Freedoms have progressed including the freedom of expression. There is progress but citizens are still fearful may be due to the remnants of the time of martial law. The current political system is open and encourages freedom, but citizens are still worried to join a party for fear of affecting their freedom and being singled out. I am happy for the successful elections of university student councils as this is important to encourage pluralism.  Democracy requires political pluralism.

Q: To which extent do results of the HRC agree with reports of the International organizations mainly the Human Rights Watch and International Organization of chastity?

A: There is consistency.  We usually open our doors to the HRW and the Int. Org. of Chastity.  They saw and wrote.  They, however, have to understand that those violations were conducted by individuals without informing or obtaining approvals from their superiors.

Q: Replying to the report of the HRW, the Government said that the International reports deliberately are meant to defame the reputation of Jordan.  Do you agree?

A: I believe that we have to accept criticism in order to avoid negative aspects in our society.  Truth should be announced and this is the main mission of the HRC.

Q: Does the Chairman of the Board of Trustees receive any financial increments for his position?

Of course not.  It is certainly a voluntary mission.

Speech from the Throne

His Majesty King Abdullah II mentioned two topics in his speech from the Throne that particulary caught my attention last Sunday in Parliament.

The first one was HM’s directive to the Government to establish timetables for rapidly implementing the new energy policy for Jordan. This policy will focus on nuclear energy, energy from oil shale and on wind power. The National Center for Energy Research reacted to these directives saying that focus should be on the renewable energy sources since these are the only ones that can be implemented quickly. Nuclear and oil shale has a much longer perspective whereas the renewable technology is well known and ready for implementation.

I can only support this point of view – but I also have to stress that in order to move forward on renewable it is necessary to establish the right legal, administrative and financial conditions for such progress. The draft law on renewable energy is one of those instruments that have to be adopted sooner rather than later in order to create these favourable conditions. I believe that this law will be on the agenda of Parliament in this session. It will be do-or-die for that kind of energy in Jordan.

There is also another reason that the government should move fast on this. The new energy strategy adopted by the Royal Commission headed by prince Hamza has set an ambitious target of 10% renewable energy in 2020. Today renewable energy is de facto energy from wind power. Solar and wave might take off commercially in the next ten years but it is not the case today. Thus, as the whole world sees the need for lowering carbon emissions demand for wind turbines is on the rise and delivery times already measured in years instead of months – not to mention the complicated and very time consuming tendering process. In order to fulfil the target of renewable energy in 2020 Jordan has to move rapidly.

Fortunately, Jordan – as Denmark – is gifted with some extremely promising and highly efficient wind sites. That means that the potential for renewable energy from wind power probably is higher than 10% of the total energy mix. This is an advantage that Jordan should exploit to the highest degree.

The other topic that caught my attention was the emphasis that His Majesty put on the need for local development. The idea is to develop the local administrative entities (municipalities and regions) so that they will be able to provide reliable public services to local citizens. At the same time these entities should be accountable to the local public and thus enhance public political participation. A Royal Commission has been formed to look into the question of decentralizing.

This topic lies at the core of democratic development. Public participation at the local level paired with efficient local institutions equipped with the necessary administrative tools and financial means is highly important in the development of a democratic society. This is – like energy – an area where my country has a world renowned experience. We have been through different stages in developing local government and decentralization – a new reform was recently implemented – and we are happy to assist Jordan in this endeavour. As a matter of fact, this exact area is one where we for the last two years have been very active working with the relevant Jordanian authorities and we look forward to continue this cooperation. More on this later.