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AMMAN — Jordan is among the most advanced Arab countries in the medical sector, with more than 18,000 hospital beds and 21,000 doctors, specialists said on Sunday.

However, the country’s healthcare sector has been deeply affected by the Arab Spring uprisings and the accompanying demographic impact on the refugee-burdened Kingdom, the experts said at a conference that opened at the Dead Sea on Sunday.

The two-day regional conference on health insurance in the Arab world, organised by the Jordanian Society for Health Insurance (JSHI), gathered 250 experts and specialists from several Arab countries, a JSHI statement said.

During the inauguration ceremony, JSHI President Ali Wazani said the number of physicians in Jordan has decreased from 46 to 39 per 10,000 people, with the ratio of hospital beds also going down from 27 to 23 per 10,000.

The statement quoted Wazani as saying that the “unprecedented” hikes in prices of medical services in Jordan and the entire Arab region was due to the rise in the energy bill. 

“If it continues like that, excellent healthcare will become a luxury for the majority of Arab citizens,” he warned.    

Jordan Insurance Federation President Othman Budair said health insurance covers 26 per cent of the total insurance sector in Jordan with the value of premiums increasing from JD117 million in 2012 to JD128 million in 2013.

AMMAN — Normalcy returned to Maan on Sunday after several days of riots and protests following security raids to arrest “wanted criminals” in the southern governorate, Interior Minister Hussein Majali said on Sunday.

In remarks at the Lower House’s Sunday session, Majali said security agencies managed to arrest 158 criminals over the past few days and are now working to detain 19 more.

The aim of these security activities in Maan, some 220km south of Amman, is to track down and detain outlaws, the minister stressed, noting that the people of Maan are not the target.

He was responding to MPs’ queries over the clashes between security forces and criminals in Maan over the past few days. 

The riots in Maan began last Tuesday following the death of a resident during a police chase of wanted suspects who attacked police guarding a court building. 

Angry residents blocked roads with burning tyres, and several shops and banks were attacked and vandalised following last week’s deadly incident. 

“There is no security campaign in Maan,” Majali noted, rather, the authorities’ current target is 19 “criminals” who are still at large and are a source of instability for the city.

The security forces are not targeting any individual for his/her political or religious activities in Maan, the minister added. 

He denied accusations that the state and its agencies are targeting the city and its inhabitants.

The “good people of Maan” and surrounding areas have exerted great efforts to bring things back to normal in the southern city, Majali said, thanking them for their cooperation.

“Maan residents are with the security forces when they focus on arresting the outlaws,” Maan 1st District Deputy Amjad Al Khattab said, stressing that innocent bystanders should not be drawn into the line of fire.

Another MP from Maan, Awad Kreishan said security operations should be implemented in a “civilised manner”, wondering why authorities did not go after the outlaws before they increased in number and capabilities.

Car chase in Maan

Also on Sunday, police arrested two men following a car chase in downtown Maan at 3pm that left three injured, an official source said.

“The vehicle was forced to stop and its three occupants fired at police forces and then attempted to escape on foot,” the source added.

Police fired tear gas in an attempt to stop the men from running away, and three people suffered tear gas inhalation, the source added.

“Two men were arrested while the third managed to escape but no one was hurt from the bullets that were fired,” he noted.

An official at Maan Public Hospital told The Jordan Times that three people were admitted Sunday suffering from tear gas inhalation.

“The three were treated and released from hospital the same day,” the official added.

*Al Rai’s Haroun Al Khattab contributed to this report

AMMAN — Her Majesty Queen Rania on Sunday visited the Eskan Al Jamaa Mixed Secondary School and checked on the progress and outcomes of two projects carried out by the Jordan Education Initiative (JEI).

The “Fursati Liltamayyoz” (My Chance to Excel) programme is designed to bridge the gap between the outcomes of the education system and the needs of the job market by providing students with advanced skills to improve their chances of employment with well-reputed companies, according to a statement from Her Majesty’s office.

Meanwhile, the JEI started implementing the “Demoqrati” programme, which was launched by the King Abdullah II Fund for Development (KAFD), to help young people build their national identity and create positive attitudes towards their national responsibility. 

It also helps young Jordanians to master the skills of dialogue and dealing with differences, the statement said.

JEI is implementing both projects in several public schools in Jordan.

During Sunday’s visit, Queen Rania first went to the school library where mothers of students were attending a session on PC maintenance and safe Internet usage.

Her Majesty then checked on two computer labs where students were taking part in a mobile game development training session as well as a programming session with the Oracle education tool Alice.

All three programmes are part of the Fursati Liltamayyoz project.

The Queen also attended part of a session organised by the dialogue and volunteerism clubs, which are part of the Demoqrati programme currently being implemented in 96 schools across the country in partnership with the Ministry of Education and JEI.

At the school’s theatre, Queen Rania joined students who were watching a live broadcast session on first aid measures conducted by the Civil Defence Department. The same session was being broadcast simultaneously to five schools in different governorates.

Launched in 2013, Fursati Liltamayyoz is an internship programme that seeks to enhance employability skills of school and university students and transform schools into ICT community hubs.

It is implemented by JEI in partnership with the ICT, education and labour ministries.

During the internship period, interns are provided with comprehensive soft and practical training courses coupled with a structured mentorship support system. 

Interns then assist a number of schools targeted by JEI in applying, sustaining and benefiting from the JEI model, the statement said.

Interns also share their experiences with local communities through developing projects based on their needs. This is followed by four-months on-the-job training in different companies.

AMMAN — Although many motorists in the capital would prefer a traffic-light free commute, several said the new signals that replaced the 7th Circle were a “good idea” to resolve congestion in the area. 

A number of drivers interviewed by The Jordan Times said they noticed that traffic jams have been reduced due to the measure taken by the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM). 

Earlier this month, the municipality replaced the circle with traffic lights to ease vehicle movement.

Yara Nuseir, who works in the area, said the project has proven successful.

“I used to wait for 10 minutes to cross the 7th Circle while heading to my job. Now, it only takes a short period of time,” she told The Jordan Times over the phone.

But not all traffic lights are a good idea, Nuseir acknowledged.

“The traffic lights on Mecca Street on the way to Mecca Mall have increased road jams instead of resolving the problem,” she noted.   

Mahmoud Khalilah, a sales director at a private company, said he does not regard traffic lights in general as a good idea, but those at the 7th Circle, a vital intersection that leads to Queen Alia International Airport, are an exception.

“The thing is, motorists did not yield the right-of-way at the circle, which sometimes led to gridlock that would last for hours. Traffic lights are the only way to force all motorists to respect priorities.”

The two-phase traffic control system prohibits cars coming from the 8th Circle from proceeding to the 6th Circle and vice versa, and also prohibits traffic from the airport road head towards Abdullah Ghosheh Street and vice versa, forcing motorists to take the tunnels instead.

Omar Shurman, an employee at a company near the 7th Circle area, said forcing motorists to go through the tunnel has regulated vehicle movement. 

“The traffic lights force people to take specific routes, which helps ease the jams.”

But Rateb Manaseer disagreed. 

The taxi driver said it now takes a longer time to reach specific destinations.

“If I want to go from the 8th Circle to Abdullah Ghosheh Street, I have to take a longer route than the one I used to take when there was a circle,” Manaseer said. 

He suggested constructing a flyover to resolve the problem.

“Unfortunately, officials don’t look for long-term solutions.”

Meanwhile, Khaled Haddadin, head of the GAM traffic operations directorate, said the municipality will conduct a study to assess the effect of the new traffic lights after construction work in the area concludes. 

“We usually conduct such a study one month after the end of the project,” he noted. 

Haddadin said the municipality is also studying several possible solutions to ease traffic jams in several busy areas in the capital, such as the 8th Circle and Mecca Street.

AMMAN — The Lower House lost quorum on Sunday in the Chamber’s last meeting of the ordinary session, with MPs failing to discuss the Privatisation Evaluation Committee’s report.

Deputy Speaker Ahmad Safadi adjourned the meeting when the total number of MPs present under the Dome fell to 45 out of the 150-member House.

Last week, His Majesty King Abdullah issued a Royal Decree proroguing the ordinary session of Parliament as of Saturday, May 3. 

Before the meeting lost quorum, Finance Minister Umayya Toukan told deputies that the government has already studied the outcomes of the report and will adopt its recommendations in certain areas.

At the strategic level, the government will proceed with two of the report’s recommendations on transparency when dealing with privatisation and selecting build-operate-transfer bases in public projects instead of transferring ownership of public utilities and services, Toukan said.

The government will ensure that all privatisation procedures are in line with regulations and the country’s Constitution, he added.

In addition, the government will set criteria for selecting its representatives on the boards of companies in which it owns shares and holding them accountable, the minister said.

The report “is rich with guidelines for us to follow in all future large-scale projects”, Toukan added.

The committee, which included members from the International Finance Corporation, the Islamic Development Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, in addition to other Jordanian experts, started its work in March last year after His Majesty King Abdullah directed the Cabinet in the Letter of Designation late 2012 to review all privatisation deals –– which have triggered public debate in the Kingdom. 

The panel has reviewed the privatisation deals of 15 companies that used to be state-owned and investigated the licensing and contracts of four other firms.

The deals were mainly in the fields of mining, telecommunications, water, transport and aviation. 

Revenues generated from privatisation reached JD1.7 billion, of which around JD1.5 billion went to paying the Kingdom’s debts, according to Omar Razzaz, head of the committee.

AMMAN — Jordan is keen on building on its partnership with Japan in all spheres, especially in parliamentary and legislative work, His Majesty King Abdullah said Sunday.

At a meeting with a Japanese parliamentary delegation, the King conveyed his greetings to Japan’s Emperor Akihito, voicing pride in the historic ties between the two countries, whose diplomatic relations date back 60 years.

Discussions covered the latest developments in the Middle East, especially those related to the peace process between the Palestinians and the Israelis based on the two-state solution.

Regarding the Syrian issue, His Majesty reiterated Jordan’s call for a comprehensive political solution that ends the suffering of the Syrian people.

The Monarch also briefed the delegates on the repercussions of hosting a huge number of Syrians in Jordan, urging the international community to continue its support to the Kingdom and local communities hosting refugees.

For their part, the Japanese lawmakers expressed their country’s keenness on boosting cooperation with Jordan.

They praised the Kingdom’s efforts to achieve peace and stability in the region, and His Majesty’s role in setting Jordan as a model for reform and development, despite regional challenges.

The delegates also thanked Jordan for its support to their country in dealing with the repercussions of the radioactive leaks at Fukushima nuclear plant after the 2011 meltdown.

Royal Court Chief Fayez Tarawneh and King’s Office Director Imad Fakhoury also attended the meeting.

Also on Sunday, Lower House Speaker Atef Tarawneh met with the Japanese parliamentary delegation and discussed the latest regional developments with them.

Talks also covered means to enhance parliamentary cooperation.

AMMAN — Jordanian poet and artist Hayel Ajlouni passed away on Sunday at the age of 70 at Al Hussein Medical City.

Ajlouni completed his secondary education in Cairo in 1961 and later studied at Alexandria University and Madrid University, where he earned a master’s degree in interior design.

He worked at Jordan Television and was sent on a scholarship to study television production in England and Taiwan.

He was promoted several times during his career at Jordan Television.

Ajlouni has several published poetry collections.

He will be laid to rest at Sweileh cemetery on Monday afternoon.

AMMAN — Amman Mayor Aqel Biltaji on Sunday highlighted the importance of partnering with engineering firms to serve the city of Amman.

During a meeting with representatives of engineering firms and companies at Al Hussein Cultural Centre, he said the Greater Amman Municipality is working on a project to re-examine ways to revive Al Karama neighbourhood on the airport road.

The project seeks to bring more commercial activity to the area, he said.

The municipality issued 2,996 construction licences during the first quarter of this year, compared with 2,713 licences during the same period last year, including licences for residential, commercial and industrial purposes, according to Biltaji.

AMMAN — Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour on Sunday received Secretary General of the Arab Thought Forum (ATF) Elsadig Bakheet Elfaqih and discussed ways to enhance cooperation.

During the meeting, Ensour and ElFaqih discussed the initiative of HRH Prince Hassan, president of the ATF, on Jerusalem which aims at keeping the holy city alive in the conscience of the Arab and Muslim nations.

Ensour highlighted Jordan’s role in safeguarding Islamic and Christian sites in Jerusalem.

AMMAN — The Council of Ministers on Sunday endorsed the 2014 amendments to the Deposit Insurance Corporation Law and an amended version of the retirement fund of agricultural engineers by-law.

The Cabinet also endorsed the 2014 amendments to the Renewable Energy Law, which simplify measures to obtain licences for implementing green energy projects.