US embassy cable - 05AMMAN3921

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 003921 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
FOR SECRETARY SPELLINGS FROM CHARGE DAVID HALE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OVIP, JO 
SUBJECT: SCENESETTER FOR THE SECRETARY OF EDUCATION'S VISIT 
TO JORDAN 
 
1. (U) Embassy Amman warmly welcomes you to Jordan.  Your 
participation in the G-8/BMENA Education Ministerial 
Meeting on Education, as well as bilateral discussions with 
Queen Rania and other high-level Jordanian, G-8, and BMENA 
officials will provide an excellent opportunity to 
highlight America's message on education reform in the 
BMENA region to Jordan and the world. 
 
2.  (U) Jordan is not only one of our closest allies in the 
region, but it is fully engaged in supporting our most 
important efforts, including creating a free Iraq, 
fulfillment of the President's vision of a two-state 
solution to the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, defeating 
global terrorism, and advancing comprehensive Jordanian and 
Arab reform.  Your program in Jordan will send important 
messages, underlining America's readiness for dialogue with 
Arab youth, our support for interactive, IT-based learning, 
and our respect for the region's deep religious and 
historical heritage. 
 
3.  (U) The King and Queen place a high priority on 
providing hope and jobs to Jordanian youth, an effort in 
which education plays a crucial role.  They realize that a 
large number of Jordanian high school and university 
graduates lack the skills required by the global 
marketplace and nearly half of them are unable to find jobs 
on the local economy.  To remedy this problem, the GOJ 
launched an ambitious five year, $380 million reform 
initiative in July 2003.  The U.S. has committed more than 
USD 50 million to support this effort. 
 
4.  (U) Background on Jordan's Education Reform Efforts: 
In 1990, the GOJ launched a two phase education reform 
program with the support of the World Bank.  These 
initiatives improved primary and secondary school 
curriculum, supported school construction/renovation, and 
strengthened teacher training and vocational education. 
Results from this program included: improved universal 
access to primary and secondary education for Jordanian 
children, and impressive gains in the upgrading of teacher 
's skills.  Nonetheless, challenges still remain.  As a 
result, the GOJ launched a comprehensive program of reform, 
called the Education Reform for the Knowledge Economy 
Initiative (ERfKE) in July 2003 to address the future human 
capacity requirements of Jordan through improved early 
childhood, primary, and secondary education. Due to 
increased USG assistance, Jordan has already adopted an 
early childhood education curriculum developed by USAID, 
and over the next three years, the U.S. will help develop 
e-learning programs for secondary schools, including 
on-line civics and English as a Second Language courses. 
Jordan is attempting to equip all classrooms with 
information technology; 50 "Discovery Schools" (including 
the one you will visit in Amman) have already been 
connected to broadband internet, thanks to U.S. 
assistance.  The U.S. will soon launch a pilot 
school-to-work program in partnership with the private 
sector. 
 
5.  (U) A Closer Look at the Education Reform for the 
Knowledge Economy Initiative (ERfKE):  As mentioned above, 
the Education Reform for the Knowledge Economy initiative 
was conceived by the GOJ in partnership with USAID, the 
World Bank and other donors.  In 2002, USAID/Jordan 
supported the development of the integrated ERfKE project 
framework, in partnership with Jordan's Ministry of 
Education. This framework outlines the concepts and costs 
of fully re-orienting Jordan's education system through 
four main areas of work: (1) re-orientation of education 
policy, (2) restructuring and realignment of education 
programs and practices, (3) support for improved physical 
learning environments, and (4) the promotion of learning 
readiness through early childhood education.  Under ERfKE, 
the World Bank has approved $120 million in loans over five 
years; the GOJ will provide $130 million; and other donors 
will contribute $130 million - of which USAID/Jordan has 
committed about $45 million in the two key sectors of early 
childhood education and youth information technology. 
 
6.  (U) A Closer Look at The Jordan Education Initiative: 
The Jordan Education Initiative was launched at the June 
2003 World Economic Forum meeting in Jordan.  Its goal is 
to develop e-curriculum and broadband IT connections for 
100 model "Discovery Schools" to advance education reform. 
To date, USAID/Jordan has committed to providing $5 million 
for support of the JEI secretariat, critical IT equipment, 
and connecting 100 schools to broadband internet links. 
In February 2004 the Department of State's Partnership 
Initiatives Office (MEPI) committed $4 million to support 
the development of English as a Second Language and 
Civics e-curriculum.   It is likely that the Government 
of Jordan will assist the Palestinian Authority in launching 
the Palestinian Education Initiative - an announcement by the 
GOJ to support this effort is being planned for the G-8/BMENA 
Ministerial Meeting on May 23rd. 
 
7.  (U) We have highlighted below the recent 
political, economic and social developments that set the 
context for your program: 
 
8.  (SBU) NEW REFORM CABINET IN JORDAN: The performance and 
prospects of the cabinet, appointed by King Abdullah April 
7, are the main item of political discussion in Jordan.  The 
new Prime Minister, Adnan Badran, is a respected academic 
but has limited political experience.  The King chose 
Badran because he saw him as committed to accelerating the 
pace of internal political reform.  However, the cabinet's 
economic team -- which has outstanding reformist 
credentials, and is led by Finance Minister Bassem 
Awadallah -- has generated strong opposition.  Many of the 
opponents believe they will lose out if the reform program 
is accelerated, and may see these ministers as too 
Western-oriented.  Forty-six of the 110 members of 
parliament have signed an open letter pledging that they 
will withhold their votes of confidence in the new 
government if PM Badran does not reshuffle his cabinet. 
 
9.  (SBU) ECONOMIC REFORM AND GROWTH:  Jordan has emerged 
as a model for economic reform in the region.  In close 
cooperation with USAID, Jordan rewrote its laws and 
regulations to meet World Trade Organization requirements, 
modernized its customs regime, and is currently 
implementing a policy of one-stop service for new investors 
under a modern investment promotion law.  These reforms 
helped Jordan's GDP of USD 10.8 billion grow by 7.6% last 
year in real terms, fueled by booming exports to Iraq and 
the U.S., which increased in 2004 by 60% and 54%, 
respectively. Jordan still has work to do, however, to 
reform basic government services, enhance law enforcement, 
and create a climate of full transparency and 
accountability. Rising prices, a tax hike approved last 
year, and widespread unemployment - officially estimated at 
13.4%, but probably higher, especially among the youth, are 
behind complaints of ordinary citizens who feel squeezed. 
As in most Arab countries, jobs, and the education needed 
to qualify for them in the globalizing economy, are the 
number one concern among Jordanian youth.  The King and 
the leadership have a strong vision of how to give young 
Jordanians the IT and English-language skills needed to 
compete in a global economy, and you will see first hand at 
the Discovery School how this is being accomplished. 
 
10.  (SBU) POLITICAL REFORM:  King Abdullah, who fully 
understands the U.S. commitment to democracy in the 
region, replaced the prior cabinet with more reform-minded 
ministers in April.  Earlier in the year, he had appointed 
two royal commissions and called on them to draft programs 
aimed at transforming the Jordanian political environment. 
The first commission is charged with forming a plan to 
decentralize government decision-making by dividing the 
country into three regions, each with its own elected 
legislature.  The second is pursuing a broad "national 
agenda," to be announced no later than September, that will 
include recommendations on reforming laws on political 
parties and elections to open further the political process 
and enhance democratic institutions. 
 
11.  (SBU) REACHING JORDAN'S YOUTH:  Unemployment and 
limits on political participation have alienated many 
Jordanian young people, leaving some prone to extremism. 
Hostility toward and suspicion of U.S. motives and foreign 
policy are strong.  The U.S. government, through both USAID 
and the Middle East Partnership Initiative, supports the 
GOJ's efforts to counter extremist tendencies, starting in 
the earliest school years.  You will have an opportunity to 
see some of these programs at work, including a visit to a 
"Discovery School" and a tour and meeting with members of 
INJAZ - a Junior Achievement-style program.  These programs 
expose young Jordanians to a broad, tolerant view of the 
world that discourages violence and extremism while 
respecting Islam and traditional values. 
 
 
HALE