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The President of Yarmouk University, Prof. Zeidan Kafafi, discussed with the Deputy Director of the British Council, Mai Abu Hamdiya, possible means of cooperation and the activation of "Raseed 21", a program that is set to enhance flexibility for meeting challenges on campus.
At the beginning of the meeting, Kafafi stressed the importance of strengthening cooperation with the British Council, which stands as one of the bodies concerned with preparing young people and providing them with various skills that qualify them to engage in the labor market. He also expressed university students’ need to be familiar with language and computer skills, which represent the gateway for various employment opportunities. Then he emphasized Yarmouk's readiness to embrace the program proposed by the Council, namely “Raseed 21,” which aims at increasing knowledge stock, developing skills, and strengthening absorptive capacity of students.
In her turn, Abu Hamdiyah indicated that the Council seeks to implement "Raseed 21" program, which is funded by the European Union, at Yarmouk University during the upcoming period. She explained that the methodology of such a program is that the Jordanian youth carries an ample stock of capabilities despite the challenges surrounding them. Young people, she mentioned, were able to avoid the dangers of slipping in non-constructive or violent paths thanks to this stockpile. Therefore, the activities of “Raseed 21” are to enhance the flexibility of students and prepare them to face life challenges in the post-college life period rather than getting stuck in the “waiting period” and other related issues.
The Director of "Raseed 21," Diala Al-Smadi, said that the program includes three tracks: active citizens, building up the stock of young people by addressing the depletion of flexibility arising from the waiting phase, and the path of positive stories. She explained that the mechanism of work in such a program must include an active citizenship for building skills, capabilities, follow-up, and guidance during the development of projects prepared by students.
The president of Yarmouk University, Dr. Zeidan Kafafi, congratulates Jordan, the king and the army on the 64th anniversary of the Arabisation of the leadership of the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army, which falls on March 1.
Kafafi recalled this great decision by His Majesty the late King Hussein as an important turning point in the history of Jordan paying tribute to the sacrifices of the Arab Army in defence of the country.
Kafafi also commended the King’s continuous efforts to support the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army (JAF) as well as the security agencies as protectors of the nation and its values.
The President of Yarmouk University, Prof. Zeidan Kafafi, met the French ambassador, Veronique Volan and the accompanying delegation, who visited the university to discuss ways to enhance cooperation in several areas of mutual interest. During the meeting, Kafafi reviewed the history of Yarmouk's cooperation relationships with the French embassy in Amman as well as the various universities, institutes, and educational institutions in France. He then stressed Yarmouk's keenness to maintain such cooperation and develop it in the field of exchanging scientific visits particularly, as this will help students learn about the French culture/ civilization, exchange experiences and knowledge, reflect experiences in the educational process at the university, and transfer new knowledge to colleagues.
Also, Prof. Kafafi acknowledged the embassy’s support of the master's program in the French language that is managed by the University’s Faculty of Arts. He then thanked the embassy for their help in providing the Department of Modern Languages with teachers of the French language. Moreover, Kafafi emphasized Yarmouk’s willingness to host French students in several postgraduate programs and fields like media, tourism, archeology, and law. He then pointed out the possibility of providing an opportunity for students of Al-Hijjawi Faculty of Technology Engineering to spend a period of field training at a French institution or company. He explained that such a strategy should inform students about the nature of the international labor market, improve their skills, and open major opportunities for them to get involved in the labor market. In addition, Kafafi asked for the possibility of sending a number of the Faculty members of al-Shari'a Faculty to spend the summer semester in one of the French colleges, institutes, or centers that are concerned with the study of Islamic religion.
Moreover, Kafafi pointed out that Yarmouk is devoted to developing and updating its academic plans for all proposed academic programs and to creating new academic programs that keep pace with developments in the world considering the information revolution. He then expressed the possibility of opening new horizons for cooperation with the scientific centers hosted by Yarmouk University like the Refugees, Displaced Persons, and Forced Migration Studies Center. He suggested that partners can implement development projects that provide care, education, and rehabilitation opportunities for Jordanians and Syrian refugees.
In turn, Volan praised the distinguished scientific reputation of Yarmouk University and its cooperative relations with various French universities in the fields of archeology and tourism. Volan then expressed the embassy’s willingness to expand cooperation between Yarmouk and French universities by increasing the number of students from Yarmouk studying in France in all academic specializations and hosting professors of Sharia and Islamic studies at French research centers that focus on religions and Islamic studies. Also, she appreciated the level of cooperation between the embassy and the Department of Modern Languages and expressed the embassy’s willingness to support the master's program of the French language at the department. In addition, she appreciated Yarmouk's interest in collaborating regarding the support of Syrian refugees in Jordan through the Menca project, which aims at encouraging distinguished university students to apply for scholarships offered through the website of the French embassy in Amman to complete their studies in France.
Interestingly, during her visit to the university, the ambassador met the students of the modern languages department. She spoke with them about the educational opportunities available to students wishing to complete their higher university studies in France. She also emphasized the availability of certain training opportunities for students at the French cultural Institute in Amman. However, the meeting was attended by the Vice-Presidents of the University, Prof. Ahmad Al-Ajlouni, Prof. Anis Khasawneh, the Political attaché at the French Embassy in Amman, Julian Cliche, the University Cooperation attaché at the French Embassy in Amman, Katrina Sabatini Cliche, and several deans and directors at the university.
Under Royal directives, Royal Court Chief Yousef Issawi on Thursday presented the Faculty of Mass Communication at Yarmouk University with an Outside-Broadcast Van (OB Van) equipped with the latest TV production technology.
Issawi highlighted His Majesty's continuous directives to support students and empower them through qualitative education which provides them with job opportunities, adding that the theoretical sciences they receive should translate into practical application, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.
During the ceremony, Issawi expressed his appreciation to the Jordan Radio and Television Corporation (JRTV), from which a team will supervise the training of the university staff and students to manage and operate the OB Van.
For his part, President of Yarmouk University Zaidan Kafafi stressed that this gesture confirms the Royal interest in science and education, and His Majesty’s keenness to advance the media profession as a building tool for the Kingdom.
JRTV Director General Muhammad Balqar affirmed that the corporation “puts all its technical expertise” at the disposal of the Faculty of Mass Communication at Yarmouk University.
He stressed that Jordan TV will provide the faculty with experts to undertake the process of training its technical staff and students in the operation, management and use of the OB van.
Jordan TV will “continuously follow up” with the faculty to train its staff and students and ensure the “optimal and qualitative usage” of the van in adherence to international specifications, he added.
(Source: JT).
(Photo:YU).
On behalf of the President of Yarmouk University, the Vice President for Administrative Affairs, Prof. Anis Khasawneh, patronized the opening of the scientific workshop, “What are the solutions to the problem of protracted displacement?”, which was organized by the university in cooperation with the Bonn International Center for Conversion (BICC) and the Michelin Institute (CMI). This event was held as part of the project: "Transnational Figurations of Displacement (TRAFIG)", which is one of the 2020 Horizon projects funded by the European Union.
Prof. Khasawneh emphasized Yarmouk's pride in being a representative of Jordan in participating in this project, which aims at illuminating policymakers by providing them with recent information on the quality of life of the displaced and how to enhance their capacity for self-reliance. He also stated that this project is one of the innovation projects that started in 2019 and will end in 2021 with the participation of 12 organizations and institutions from Europe, Africa, and Asia. Khasawneh then emphasized how the project views local and cross-border networks as sources that benefit the displaced in their daily lives. Moreover, Khasawneh stressed Yarmouk’s long experience in dealing with asylum and displacement issues through its Center for Refugees, Displaced Persons, and Forced Migration. The university’s strategy, he declared, is concerned with conducting specialized studies and scientific research in this field in cooperation with various international organizations and local institutions.
In turn, Dr. Fawaz Al-Momani, the project coordinator at the university, explained that this workshop presents the results of the initial research for the TRAFIG project. It also analyzes these results through the participants who are activists in the field of development/ humanitarian work, international organizations, representatives of Jordanian national institutions, and academics. Dr. Fawaz shed some light on how TRAFIG seeks to improve refugee protection and resilience and aims at enhancing confidence and cooperation between refugees and their host communities through investigating four research areas: ruling regimes, living in harsh conditions, tracking the network of relationships, and building alliances. Then he mentioned that the research team for the project includes Dr. Rashid Al-Jarrah, Dr. Tamara Yaqoub, Dr. Raghda Al-Faouri, Dr. Ali Audat, Dr. Rasha Al-Hosban, Woroud Awad, Rola Masad, Ahmed Shdaifat and Khaled Al-Momani.
In turn, Marion Nowak of the International Center for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) praised the efforts of the research team from Yarmouk University, noting that this project will be the beginning of long-term cooperation relations with Yarmouk University. Noteworthy here that the workshop included a presentation of the project objectives made by Dr. Benjamin Etzold and Marion Nowak, and it also incorporated a discussion of the results of the preliminary research presented by Dr. Sarah Tobin, Dr. Ari John Knudsen, and Dr. Fawaz Momani.