Germany allocates 127.9m euros in additional aid to Jordan

AMMAN — Germany has allocated 127.9 million euros as additional aid in grants, technical assistance and soft loans that target "substantially important sectors for Jordan", the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation said Saturday. 

The assistance addresses the water and sewage disposal, environment, renewable energy, solid waste management, and vocational training and technical education sectors.

The meetings between Jordan and Germany, during which the assistance was agreed on, officially concluded in Amman on Saturday in the presence of Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Imad Fakhoury and German Ambassador to Jordan Birgitta Maria Siefker-Eberle.

The minister said the meetings focused on following up on the development cooperation programme of 2015. 

Saleh Kharabsheh, the ministry's secretary general, and Andreas Jess of the German ministry of development and economic cooperation signed the minutes of meetings, along with concerned ministries and institutions.

The breakdown of this assistance is as follows: 45 million euros as a soft loan; 30 million euros as grants; and 22.9 million euros as technical assistance. 

Thirty million euros is also allocated as additional grants to support Syrian refugees and host communities in the fields of water, sewage disposal and education. The assistance is channelled through UNICEF, the ministry said.

Germany has doubled, for the past few years, its annual grants to Jordan because of the regional conditions and in an attempt to bring an equilibrium between development and humanitarian assistance, the ministry said.

Fakhoury underlined the importance of Jordan’s strategic partnership with Germany that serves the interests of both countries, thanking Berlin for its support. 

He said Germany is a major development partner for Jordan, especially in the water sector, adding that the talks were “transparent and constructive... within a mutually consultative process”.

The German ambassador highlighted her country’s deep relations with Jordan, stressing that Germany is ready to continue supporting the Kingdom, especially in sectors of high priority.

Siefker-Eberle commended Jordan’s reform achievements, especially in light of regional events, expressing her understanding of the huge burdens the Kingdom is bearing, especially with the influx of Syrian refugees.