Project offers facelift to schools, livelihood for underprivileged

AMMAN — A project funded by Germany and executed by the World Food Programme (WFP) has renovated 600 schools in Jordan, entering its fourth stage with plans to revamp 200 more.

Titled “Food for Training”, the project operates in different areas of the Kingdom, including Amman, Irbid, Salt, Madaba and Maan.

According to Mohammed Zoubi, Communication Officer at NAJMAH (National Alliance Against Malnutrition and Hunger), another partner of the project responsible for implementing it on the ground, said each phase of the project lasts about five months and targets around 20 schools.

“The renovation is carried out by vulnerable members of the community, who get paid for their work. Each phase employs 700-800 workers,” he told The Jordan Times on Tuesday.

Launched in 2017 and currently in its fourth phase, two new elements have been added to the project this round, which are school gardens and hydroponic plant houses, he added.

“This is both educational and practical. Hydroponic plantation is a new concept and for the students to be familiar with it is important for future employment and skill-building,” added Zoubi.

For the WFP, the project is “multi-faceted” in its benefit, according to Communication Officer Julia Mills.

“The project helps create a healthy and safe environment through the renovation of the school. It also familiarises the students with healthy food and nutrition, which is what the WFP’s work in a broader context is about,” she told The Jordan Times on Tuesday.

“Then there is the inclusion of the local community through the workers, most of whom are among the most vulnerable of their areas,” she added.

The project tries to maintain a 50-50 per cent ratio in terms of men to women, and also in terms of Jordanians to Syrians.

“We try to target schools in the most vulnerable areas, which happen to be areas with a high amount of refugees,” Mills said.

Maram Zoubi, a widowed woman in her 50’s among the workers, said the project “helps her make some much-needed extra cash for herself and her children”.

She told The Jordan Times on Sunday that the project is “perfect” for her as she gets to go home at two, in time for her children’s return from their schools.

The project pays JD14 a day, and lasts for 14 days a month over five months.

Funded by the German Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the project is among numerous ones receiving financial support from Germany’s 56-million-euro contribution to Jordan, according to Mills.

Ahmed Othman, a 23-year-old Syrian worker, said the project is “much more comfortable than private construction work”.

Othman “hopes there are more phases of the project” as he “has never felt as respected and valued” as he does now, he said over the phone.