Prince Mired, Kreishan sign MoU to provide accessible infrastructure

AMMAN — HH Prince Mired, president of the Higher Council for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (HCD), along with Deputy Prime Minister and Local Administration Minister Tawfiq Kreishan on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to provide technical support to improve development services and municipal infrastructure.

The MoU, signed in the presence of World Bank Resident Representative in Jordan Holly Benner, seeks to help 28 different municipalities comply with accessibility requirements and implement comprehensive designs for persons with disabilities. The municipalities fall under the scope of the "Municipal services and social adaptation" project, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Prince Mired stressed the importance of the partnership, which reflects “the genuine spirit of cooperation” in development work among the municipalities, local communities and the public and private sectors. 

The prince noted that the memo contributes to establishing innovative service and development projects that meet the needs of local communities, including persons with disabilities, and creating jobs.

The prince referred to the most significant challenges facing persons with disabilities in Jordan, noting that the greatest challenge presently lies in the field of education, as only 2 per cent of persons with disabilities receive any form of education. 

The prince attributed this to a lack of accessibility in public schools.

Kreishan expressed the ministry's keenness to be a partner in the council in conducting tasks associated with the Persons with Disabilities Law, such as ensuring equal opportunities and non-discrimination based on disability, and inclusion of persons with disabilities as part of a diverse society. 

Recently, Kreishan directed the municipalities and ministry officials to ensure that this year's municipal budgets reserve 4 per cent of all vacancies for persons with disabilities in accordance with the law, he said.

The memo provides for visits from the council's technical team to check on projects under-construction, and prepare reports on the technical specifications to be provided in accordance with building code requirements for persons with disabilities. 

It also seeks to provide all information and data on the project in accessible formats, such as Braille and sign language, so that persons with disabilities are able to access the data and understand its contents. 

The memo also provides for awareness-raising activities and training programmes.

The third phase of the municipal services and social adaptation project, run by the Ministry of Local Administration in partnership with the World Bank, is a continuation of the first phase, which was conducted between 2013 and 2017.

The second phase, implemented between 2018 and 2021, sought to support 28 municipalities in coping with the effects of refugee influxes and provide various services through the establishment of innovative development projects that create job opportunities for the local community and help improve economic growth in the municipalities.