The EU and the Jordan Anti-Corruption Commission launch twinning project

The Jordan Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission in cooperation with the European Union (EU) launched a twinning project to support National Institutional efforts in Jordan to strengthen Integrity and corruption prevention, which are managed by the Jordanian Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission.

Funded by the European Union (EU), this project aims to review the application of the national integrity standards in the public sector to guarantee the implementation, compliance with, and activation of these standards with related institutions in Jordan.

Additionally, the project focuses on creating mechanisms that enable the Jordan Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission and its specialized directorates to effectively assess corruption risks within sectors that are selected from public sector institutions, which are the target institutions of the project.

The Chairman of the Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission, Dr. Muhannad Hijazi stressed during the opening ceremony of the depth of the relationship and friendship between Jordan and the EU countries, and their role in providing support to the Commission, noting that the project will be an valuable addition that provides the Commission and its specialists with ideas and mechanisms that help to further specialize and institutionalize  programs and projects of the Commission. Dr. Hijazi also praised the role that the implementing partners will play in both the Republic of Lithuania and the Republic of Austria to make this project a success, noting that the project team in charge of implementing the program started its work in the time frame agreed upon and despite the pandemic conditions that the world is still suffering from.

For her part, the EU Ambassador to Jordan, H.E Maria Hadjitheodosiou, stated that "the EU is proud to be in position to support Jordan. Corruption in the public sector impedes the efficiency of public services, undermines confidence in public institutions and increases the cost of public transactions, and at the same time integrity is essential for building strong institutions resistant to corruption."

"The EU and Jordan’s cooperation on integrity and corruption prevention has progressed over the years. To reaffirm and strengthen this cooperation, the EU in Jordan is launching this twinning project, which aims to revise the national integrity standards in the public sector, and increase JIACC's capacity to assess and manage corruption risks in several sectors. She also stated that, this twinning will soon run in parallel and synergize with another programme on integrity and accountability that OECD should start implementing soon for an amount of € 6,8 million,” the Ambassador said.   

The Austrian ambassador to Jordan, Mr. Oskar Wüstinger, emphasized the role of the Republic of Austria. In 2010 the Federal Bureau for Anti-Corruption, the Austrian Anti-Corruption Agency, were established. Austria is also hosting in Vienna the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). UNODC serves as the Secretariat of the UN Convention Against Corruption, the only legally binding universal anti-corruption instrument.

Mr. Ernestas Grabažis - Charge d'Affaires of the Republic of Lithuania to Jordan emphasized on his country’s role in implementing joint programs with Jordan. Such as the twinning project in Jordan “Capacity Building of Public Security Directorate / Borders and Residence Department”. He also said that the current (EU) Twinning project is the sixth where the Special Investigation Service of Lithuania has been engaged in. and that, Lithuania’s institutions are widely recognized competence in democratic governance. In addition to many experts from government agencies, international organizations and civil society organizations.

H.E Sami Salaita, Commission’s board member, talked about the importance of the twinning project which aims to enhance the capacities of specialized departments in the Jordanian Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission in assessing and managing corruption risks in selected sectors. this will be done through the exchange of experiences between the Commission's staff and the Lithuanian and Austrian project managers, in addition to the importance of its implementation, which lies in strengthening the capabilities of the staff in the Commission and raising the awareness of the public and private sector and civil society organizations of the values of integrity and principles of transparency.

Mr. Jovitas Raškevičius –Lithuanian project leader emphasized the role of the Special Investigation Service of the Republic of Lithuania is anti-corruption activities such as criminal investigation and criminal intelligence of high-level corruption-related crimes, preventing corruption, spreading anti-corruption awareness, and providing analytical anti-corruption intelligence

This twining project, which will be implemented over a period of 21 months, will contribute to building the capacity of the Integrity and Anti-Corruption Commission through the application of best practices within the standards adopted by the European Union and relevant international organizations, and in accordance with Jordanian context, which will be implemented in cooperation with experts and specialists from the Special Investigation Service of the Republic of Lithuania (STT), Police Department under the Ministry of the Interior of the Republic of Lithuania (PD), Chief Official Ethics Commission (COEC), Central Project Management Agency (CPMA), and the Austrian Agency for European Integration and Economic Development (AEI) in cooperation with the Jordanian Integrity & Anti-Corruption Commission (JIACC).

To achieve its objectives, the project will include training programs, specialized missions, workshops, and study visits which will develop the work of the competent directorates of the Integrity and Anti-Corruption Authority and upgrade the competence and professionalism of its staff.