EU celebrates Jordan’s achievements on int’l day of democracy

AMMAN — The EU delegation in Jordan celebrated the achievements made as part of their recently-launched programme “Enhanced Support to Democratic Governance in Jordan”, in remarks to The Jordan Times earlier this week.

On the occasion of the International Day of Democracy, marked annually on September 15, EU representatives commended the collaborative approach’s success since the inception of the programme, officially announced in May 2017.

Launched with the aim of “supporting Jordan's reform process towards consolidation of deep democracy and to promote inclusiveness of policy and decision-making process”, the 17.7 million-euro programme is funded by the EU and the government of Spain, and implemented by a consortium led by the European Centre for Electoral Support (ECES), according to an EU statement.

“This programme is a first of its kind, based on a comprehensive approach encompassing the main components of democracy: Parliament, elections, political parties and civil society, all brought together under one single umbrella with a strong focus on women and youth,“ Ibrahim Laafia, head of cooperation at the EU delegation, told The Jordan Times.

“This is a cross-fertilisation between all aspects of democracy that has never been tested before. We strongly believe in the importance of engaging all actors to help build their capabilities and enhance interaction with each other. This is why we have shifted from an 'event oriented' strategy to a 'cycle oriented' one," he noted.

The EU officials agreed on the importance of a holistic approach, whereby strengthening the parliament and the political party system, enhancing the rule of law and making the decision-making process more inclusive which, in turn, supports the electoral process and the civil society’s trust in the country's institutions.

For Aous Qutaishat, adviser to the chairman of the Independent Election Commission (IEC), “The EU has been one of the leaders pushing for the implementation of His Majesty King Abdullah’s initiatives.”

“Jordan was the perfect place to implement this innovative programme, as it already has a conducive environment with all the parties involved in the process in harmony, and willing to move forward,” he noted.

In his speech at the launch ceremony, EU Ambassador to Jordan, Andrea Matteo Fontana, had emphasised the EU’S alignment to His Majesty’s vision for political reform, as expressed in his discussion papers, to achieve a “vibrant Jordanian democracy, founded on the gradual deepening of parliamentary government”.

“Jordan is the only country in the region that has chosen the ballot box instead of the bullet box and this is a success story we want to build on,” Qutaishat stated.

“We are still in the inception phase,” Fabio Bargiacchi, ECES executive director, said, noting that “after four months of implementation, we now have a good idea of how to gradually move forward over the next four years”.

A follow up meeting of the programme’s coordination committee is scheduled for the end of September, where high-level representatives from all institutions involved in the programme including the speaker of the House of Representatives, the president of IEC and the minister of political and parliamentary affairs, together with the EU and Spanish ambassadors, will convene to review the programme’s objectives and activities.

“This programme is first and foremost a peer to peer approach to democracy whereby the EU brings its expertise and help build local capacities,” Laafia stressed, adding “we are not here as consultants brought to teach or impose.”

A friendly football cup titled “Score for Democracy” will take place on Saturday with all the partners involved in the programme: “this team-building event is the perfect representation of our collaborative approach to democracy”, he concluded.