Political framework for scientific and technological cooperation

The political basis of German-Jordanian cooperation – an agreement on cultural cooperation from 1982 – was supplemented by the EU-Jordan Agreement on Scientific and Technological Cooperation in 2009. Furthermore, thanks to a memorandum of understanding signed in 2009, the support given to the GJU was afforded a political basis. 

The German-Jordanian University (GJU)

GJU provides students with academic training which is highly practice-oriented, and which aims to meet the needs of Jordan's industry and society. Modelled on the success of German universities of applied sciences, GJU has, since it was established in 2005, enriched Jordan’s academic landscape with its strong focus on practical relevance, and is now regarded as one of the top three universities in the Kingdom of Jordan. The students’ intercultural competences are fostered through obligatory German language instruction, a semester spent at a German university, and an internship at a German company. Close cooperation with numerous German companies serves to create a link between academic teaching and research on the one hand, and German industry know-how on the other, while also helping to set up application-oriented research structures at GJU.

In order to continue to embed the University in both society and industry, the Deanship of Innovation, Technology Transfer and Entrepreneurship (DI-TECH) was established in 2021. It brings together important principles which characterise German universities of applied sciences, and incorporates them into GJU’s structure. GJU’s leading German partner is the Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences, which also coordinates the large German network of companies and universities (over 120, to be precise). The Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) provided support for the establishment and expansion of GJU through the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). Currently, the cooperation between GJU and the Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences is supported by the DAAD, for example as part of Transnational Education projects (TNE). The GJU campus is located in Madaba, some 35 kilometres to the south of the capital of Amman.

Longstanding cooperation in water management

The BMBF has, for years, been cooperating with research partners in Jordan in the field of water management. The projects aim to manage scarce water resources as sustainably as possible. In 2012, the BMBF opened the so-called NICE Implementation Office Amman in order to provide the Jordanian Ministry of Water and Irrigation and the National Implementation Committee for Effective Integrated Wastewater Management in Jordan (NICE) with scientific advice. These measures were intended to consolidate the results of the SMART (Sustainable Management of Available Water Resources with Innovative Technologies) collaborative project in the field of Integrated Water Resource Management (IWRM) in the Lower Jordan Valley. In 2020, the BMBF published a call for proposals on the topic of “Middle East Water Research” (MEWAC) with the aim of promoting cross-border solutions to the urgent issues of water use and purification in the entire region. In this context, too, German and Jordanian researchers work together. 

SESAME – The first synchrotron radiation facility in the Middle East

SESAME (Synchrotron Light for Experimental Science and Applications in the Middle East) is an important multidisciplinary centre of excellence which will strengthen fundamental research in physics in the Middle East. It is the region's first international synchrotron radiation source, and was established under the auspices of UNESCO in Allaan, Jordan in 2002. The electron storage ring BESSY I originally came from Germany. Beside Jordan, participants in the project include Bahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Israel, the Palestinian Territories, and Turkey; Germany has observer status. The facility serves to conduct fundamental research, as well as offering training and research opportunities for junior researchers in the region.

SESAME targets a broad range of scientific applications, for example studying the structure of large biomolecules such as proteins or ribosomes. It therefore has great potential for the natural, materials and life sciences as well as for archaeology and cultural heritage conservation. It is intended that SESAME should become a centre of excellence attractive for the Middle East, North Africa and the Gulf region, while also strengthening international research cooperation with Europe. The facility was opened in May 2017 and has been used intensively by the scientific community since July 2018. 

PRIMA - Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area

In addition to bilateral cooperation, Germany and Jordan are also jointly involved in projects of the European Union (EU), as well as transnational funding programmes. For example, both countries work intensively towards implementing projects as part of the PRIMA Initiative (Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area). The thematic foci are food security, water, and agricultural systems. 

Transregional and interdisciplinary cooperation at the Arab-German Young Academy of Sciences and Humanities (AGYA)

The activities and research projects of the BMBF-funded AGYA network of excellence at the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities generally involve Arab countries and Germany, with a strong transregional approach which promotes cooperation between Germany and one or more Arab countries. Mainly interdisciplinary research projects are carried out by way of six working groups (Energy, Water and Environment; Arab and German Education; Dynamics of Transformation; Common Heritage and Common Challenges; Health and Society; Innovation). Some of AGYA’s members and alumni are Jordanian scientists.