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AMMAN — Deputising for His Majesty King Abdullah, Jordanian Ambassador to France Makram Queisi on Tuesday attended the opening of the Paris Peace Forum (PPF).

The forum, which includes the high-level participation of heads of states, governments and officials from around the world, aims at encouraging international cooperation and collective action to create more peaceful societies, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The event, which is being held for the second time, focusses on six major themes: Peace and security, development, environment, new technologies, inclusive economy and culture and education. 

AMMAN — The American Concrete Institute (ACI) Conference on Materials and Design is scheduled to be held on Sunday in attendance of HRH Princess Sumaya, president of the Royal Scientific Society (RSS).

The two-day event, hosted at the RSS in Amman, is co-organised by the ACI and the Jordan Concrete Association in cooperation with the RSS and the Jordan Engineers Association, and will see the participation of local and foreign experts to discuss the latest developments in concrete construction, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

Participants are also expected to review the requirements of the building code for concrete construction recently issued by the ACI. 

AMMAN — Senate President Faisal Fayez on Tuesday received the annual report of the Jordan Integrity and Anti-corruption Committee (JIACC), which included achievements and recommendations from 2018.

Receiving JIACC Chief Commissioner Mohannad Hijazi, Fayez commended the commission’s role in addressing corruption and enhancing the values of justice and integrity, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra, adding that the senate will support the JIACC’s efforts and will remove legislative hindrances facing its work. For his part, Hijazi reviewed the top achievements of the commission mentioned in the report.  

AMMAN — Minister of Justice Bassam Talhouni and EU Ambassador to Jordan Maria Hadjitheodosiou, on Tuesday discussed ways to enhance bilateral cooperation and the EU’s support to Jordan’s justice sector through the bloc’s Justice Sector Support Project.

Among the project’s expected outcomes is the establishment of the new Judicial Institute of Jordan building, scheduled for inauguration in the near future, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

Work is under way to implement the project to support the rule of law through the EU-funded 2018-2022 budget, valued at 50 million euros, Talhouni said.

The project will witness the establishment of a new Palace of Justice in Jerash and a new Criminal Court in Amman. 

For her part, the ambassador lauded the justice sector’s legislative reform efforts and expressed a desire for continued cooperation to create an environment suitable for the implementation of the legislation in question.

AMMAN — The government is keen on supporting pharmaceutical industries and addressing the challenges they face, Minister of Industry and Trade Tareq Hammouri said on Tuesday. Heading a meeting to discuss the sector’s challenges, the minister said that the pharmaceutical sector is an important export sector and contributes to boosting gross domestic product, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

The ministry is preparing a plan that tackles problems and possible solutions in cooperation with stakeholders, the official highlighted, adding that the ministry is keen on partnering with the private sector to reduce unemployment for Jordanians.

Representatives of the sector reviewed challenges and highlighted the importance of partnership with the government. 

AMMAN — The Public Security Department (PSD) on Tuesday  refuted claims that a video circulated on social media, allegedly showing footage of heavy gunfire at a roundabout in Irbid, was filmed in Jordan, noting that the video was taken in an Arab country. 

In a statement carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, the PSD spokesperson warned against sharing the video and stressed the importance of verifying content via accredited sources. 

AMMAN — The Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ) and the Jordan Nurses Association (JNA) on Tuesday signed a service subscription agreement, including e-FAWATEER.com, an online bill payment service.

The agreement, signed by CBJ Deputy Governor Adel Sharkas and JNA President Khaled Rababaa, aims at spreading e-services to improve efficiency, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The CBJ’s national strategy for financial inclusion for 2018-2020 has increased the Kingdom’s financial inclusion from 24 per cent to 42 per cent, Sharkas said.

The number of public and private institutions that have been linked with e-FAWATEER.com has reached 191, providing more than 442 e-payment services. Since its launch in 2015, e-FAWATEER.com has handled some JD16 billion in payments through 28 million transactions, Petra added.

AMMAN — Criminal Investigation Department (CID) personnel have thwarted an attempt by three people to defraud a citizen of JD1 million and arrested one of the suspects in Ramtha, the Public Security Department (PSD) said on Monday.

CID employees received a tip-off about some people who had the intention to deceive a citizen by selling him $2 million for JD1 million, the PSD spokesperson said, as reported by the Jordan News Agency, Petra.

The spokesperson noted that security agents identified the suspects and the selling date of the sale before raiding the deals location the deal and arresting a suspect.

The PSD official said that the search was ongoing to arrest the other two suspects, one of whom is allegedly wanted for 12 cases and the other other of whom who is suspected to be involved in four cases of fraud and theft.

AMMAN — Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) personnel have foiled an attempt to smuggle 5,000 pills hidden in coffee containers to a neighbouring country in a mail package, and have arrested a suspect, the Public Security Department (PSD) spokesperson said on Tuesday.

In a PSD statement, cited by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, the spokesperson said that AND personnel received a tip-off about the attempted smuggling, after which an AND team followed up on the tip-off.

He added that the security agents identified the suspect, an Arab national, and located the package containing the pills in Zarqa. AND personnel arrested the suspect and referred the case to the Attorney General’s office. 

AMMAN — Under the banner “#EmpowerWomenJo”, the Embassy of Sweden on Tuesday hosted over 100 of the country’s foremost business leaders, influencers and investors to discuss how women’s entrepreneurship can be strengthened in Jordan to shape a sustainable future, according to a statement from the embassy.

The event concluded a two-week training for promising women-led startups during which participants learned how to develop a business idea, identify new markets, calculate their profit margins and convince investors, according to Sweden’s Chargé d’Affaires Jakob Ström.

The event also attracted the top strata of women business leaders in Jordan and representatives of Swedish companies, among them IKEA, Ericsson, TetraPak and ABB, the statement said. The training was arranged in partnership with Creative Startups and with support from the EU.