 Gathered together our first night in Amman at a local ceramic gallery, Ambassador Kawar described Jordan as a country located between a rock and a hard place, more literally between Israel and Iraq. For a nation which is between countries who, throughout history, have been plagued by war, daily acts of terror, and general instability - our delegation began to recognize the magnificence of the Kingdom of Jordan. From Bedouins to businessmen, and from school children to Her Majesty Queen Rania, the citizens of Jordan are working on a daily basis to further advance the prestige, technological prowess, educational reform, and general economic and civil development of the nation. Over the course of one whirlwind week, our delegation had the opportunity to witness many of these initiatives that are currently underway and met with the people that are responsible for making this progress a reality.
Two notable women our delegation had the privilege to meet with were two Ministers in the Jordanian government - Her Excellency Suhair Al-Ali, Minister of Planning, and Her Excellency Maha Khatib, Minister of Tourism - both of whom represent the incredible advances made by women in Jordanian society. Both ministers echoed the sentiments expressed on our first evening in Amman - Jordan strives to be a regional leader through its commitment to providing opportunities for women, its drive to reform and excel its educational system, and its effort to boost its economy through promoting and marketing its vast natural resource: tourism. Minister Al-Ali spoke of the need to continue to empower women in Jordan and also expressed the continued need to promote and create exchange programs that bring Jordanians to the United States. In our conversation with Minister Khatib, we shared with her our thoughts on how to increase tourism in Jordan and learned about the steps being taken by the Board of Tourism in Jordan to promote tourism and to involve its people in one of the fastest growing industries in the country. The dialogue between our delegation and these two remarkable, powerful women allowed us to gain insight into Jordan's role as a regional hub for growth, development, and prosperity.
Through our visits to both a public school in Husban, a suburb of Amman, and to the King's Academy, the first of its kind boarding school, our delegation was able to experience firsthand the commitment to educational reform and the advancement of the Jordanian government on two very different spectrums. During our meeting with Her Majesty Queen Rania, we learned about the Madrasati School Initiative, which aims to support underprivileged public schools, such as the school in Husban. There are over 400 struggling public schools in Jordan and through Madrasati, all of these schools over the course of time will receive the help they need to provide the best possible education for its students. Alternatively, the King's Academy serves as a leader in the Middle East as the first co-education boarding school modeled after the Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts and opened by the His Majesty King Abdullah II in 2007. The Bridges delegation met with students at both the school in Husban and students at the King's Academy. When asked about their experience at the King's Academy, one female student responded that the King's Academy provides young women a chance to learn to shine among both genders. The students at the King's Academy possessed an understanding of what it means to be a part of a global community and shared with the delegation their willingness to continue to serve as examples of the potential for change that exists in the region.
Even though Jordan is located in what maybe considered as one of the more unstable regions of the world, our delegation engaged with a people who are committed to peace, the economic and educational advancement of its nation, and a willingness to work as members of a global community. From the young students at the school in Husban who were so eager to meet with our delegation to our refined dinner companions who discussed their personal roles in Jordan's future, our delegation met people who work collaboratively to promote a better future, not only in the Middle East, but throughout the world. After a week of meeting new people and making new friends, our delegation gained a broader perspective of the people of our world, that our differences - whether color, nationality, gender, or religion - should never come before the fact that, as global citizens, we have a responsibility to promote a message of peace and understanding between all people of our world.
|
