Panel session hears of challenges, successes of women leaders in Jordan’s municipal sector

AMMAN — A multi-session event organised by the Jordan Municipal Support Project (JMSP) on Monday delved into the challenges and successes of women leaders in the Kingdom’s municipal sectors.

The event titled “The Municipal Sector Experience: Women Leaders Inspiring other Women leaders”, came as part of JMSP’s third project component focusing on knowledge sharing and public engagement.

During the event, JMSP Director Hadeel Khasawneh said that “the project seeks to strengthen the resilience and adaptiveness of municipalities through supporting and developing leadership and management capacities in the Ministry of Local Administration and municipalities”.

Khasawneh also talked about the project’s main objectives including fostering meaningful community engagement, as well as strengthening the Kingdom’s municipal sector.

In her remarks, Donica Pottie, Canadian ambassador to Jordan, talked about the significant role women leaders play in elected and appointed positions, in addition to shedding light on their roles in adapting to changing circumstances and crises.

In its third annual platform event, JMSP aimed to support women in the municipal sector, including women leaders in the Ministry of Local Administration, Cities and Villages Development Bank (CVDB) staff, executive managers, local development unit staff, and newly elected mayors and councillors, in addition to fostering a networking environment for women leaders.

The platform also aims to empower women and advance gender equality in Jordan. It provides the opportunity for female Jordanian staff and elected officials to network, exchange with and learn from their peers.

The JMSP supports the resilience of Jordanian municipalities primarily in the central and southern parts of Jordan, through strengthening municipal leadership and administrative capacity of the Ministry of Local Administration and the Kingdom’s 12 municipalities, improving solid waste management and enhancing public engagement, according to a statement sent to The Jordan Times.

The JMSP is a six-year (2017-2023) project, implemented by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM) in collaboration with Jordan’s Ministry of Local Administration and Jordanian municipalities, and is funded by Global Affairs Canada.

Furthermore, the event is designed to foster a networking environment, whereby Jordanian women from the municipal sector can share, discuss, and learn from their own local experience and knowledge with peers, as well with women leaders from other countries and sectors.

During the first session titled “Crisis Management; Challenges and Actions of Executive Managers during COVID-19”, Afaq Kershan, executive manager at Ayl Municipality in the Maan Governorate, said that, “the pandemic was a lesson for us in order to be prepared for future crises,” pointing to the importance of continuously updating strategies and electronic systems in the municipal sector.

The event saw four more sessions, which mainly focused on community engagement in strategic and solid waste management initiatives and women’s roles in the municipal sector.