U.S. Ambassador to Jordan Henry Wooster, alongside representatives from renowned American and Jordanian universities, officially launched the “RAWABIT” Binational Higher Education Cooperation Network project on Monday at a ceremony hosted by Al-Hussein Technical University, one of the Crown Prince foundation initiatives. RAWABIT, meaning “Connections”, will foster collaboration and information-sharing among Jordanian and U.S. universities, vocational and technical schools, and professional training academies, to enhance institutional capacity and promote university-industry partnerships, according to an embassy statement. Wooster underscored the importance of expanding and diversifying higher education partnership between the United States and Jordan. Expressing appreciation for the collaborative efforts and progressive vision demonstrated by the RAWABIT project, he said “the universities and educational institutions represented in this room today, and those that will inevitably join us in the future, are brought together by a common cause, to help build up the next generation of Jordanians to deliver prosperity to their country, and I want you to know that the United States, both its government and academia, stand with you.” The RAWABIT project, funded by the U.S. State Department and implemented by the Jordanian-American Commission for Educational Exchange, aims to establish an open and transparent environment for information exchange and collegiality among institutions of higher education, administrators, faculty, staff, and researchers from both countries, and encourage more mobility, said the statement. Recognizing that university is not the only path to economic opportunity, RAWABIT aims to facilitate increased cooperation in all forms of higher and post-secondary education, to bridge the education-to-employment gap and improve economic outcomes for all Jordanians, it said.
Source: Jordan News Agency