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NEF is registered as an international NGO with the Jordanian Ministry of Social Development. It has a staff of eight in its Amman office.
1) Urban Newcomers: NEF is assisting poor families recently arriving in Zarqa, Jordan's second largest city, including many Iraqis fleeing the war. With $1.2 million in funding from the International Rescue Committee, NEF's two-year project has selected six community-based organizations in Zarqa and is training and equipping them to provide neediest newcomers with psycho-social support, training in job skills and income generating activities and access to social services and community participation.
2) Local Development Program: NEF is managing a $4.23 million project to stimulate economic development in six of the poorest regions of Jordan, including training local community organizations in business activities and assisting them in identifying and starting at least one new business in each region. The project also will support development of social and physical infrastructure that the communities identify and provide lending facilities for entrepreneurs in the regions. NEF is working in partnership with JOHUD, one of Jordan's royal foundations, with a grant from the Jordanian Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation.
3) Fish Farming: NEF continues to promote fish farming in Jordan, an initiative that it began in 1986. NEF currently work with the extension agents from the Jordanian Ministry of Agriculture in coaching and supervising more than thirty fish farms in the Jordan Valley and eastern Jordan. Fish represent an additional source of protein for farm families and contribute on average an additional 10% to annual family income.
NEF's History in Jordan: NEF has worked in Jordan since 1937, concentrating initially on vocational training, literacy, agriculture and rural development. In 1971, the late King Hussein awarded the Near East Foundation the prestigious Star of the Second Order for its contributions to Jordan in the fields of economic and social development. In the 1980s, NEF introduced fish farming technologies in rural areas and worked with organizations providing services in urban communities.
From 2004 to 2006, NEF led the highly successful Qudorat project which combined technical assistance, micro-finance and small grant making to assist 43 community-based organizations in six governorates to create 33 new businesses employing 243 people, with a budget of $2.8 million provided by the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation. Businesses included food processing, waste recycling and light industry, and many employed and were led by women.
Latest Reports From the Field:
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Reports From the Field ; Jordan - Tuesday, May 22, 2007
NEF Jordan Staffer Named ‘Woman of the Month’
To the NEF (Near East Foundation) Jordan team, Ghadeer Qassem is their vivacious, dedicated, personable microcredit colleague, business development specialist and training manager of the Qudorat program, which has been a huge boost for Jordanian nonprofits and their income generation. For readers of Jordan's "Viva Woman" magazine, she is "Woman of the Month." In the attached article she answers how she came to work in social development--"...NEF gave me all the support in the world"--among oth ... (more) |
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Reports From the Field ; Jordan - Sunday, May 20, 2007
Ladies First – Winning On Their Own Merits
(NEF Qudorat project consultant Kathy Sullivan's article first appeared on the online extension service of "Monday Developments," the magazine of InterAction--the umbrella organization for 170+ U.S. international assistance organizations.)
By Kathy Sullivan, NEF Qudorat Consultant
There is an ongoing discourse in development circles regarding the ethics and effectiveness of advancing women's empowerment by giving women affirmative action-type "special treatment." The Near East Found ... (more) |
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Reports From the Field ; Jordan - Tuesday, April 17, 2007
NEF's Qudorat Project Continues to Be a Big 'Success Story' for Jordan's Media
THE JORDAN TIMES – HOME NEWS
Qudorat Project
Overcoming the odds...
By Linda Hindi
AMMAN -- Success can mean many things to different people. It may be overcoming the odds, making money, winning competitions or successfully serving your community. But for the members of the Jubba women's society, it is all of the above.
The society took on the unconventional task of cleaning cattle manure from the streets of Jubba to produce fertilisers and planting soil.
The project hit ... (more) |
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Reports From the Field ; Jordan - Sunday, March 11, 2007
NEF's Pioneering Approach to Meeting the Needs of Jordanian Youth
Jordan's Al-Farthakh Sports Club was founded in 1982 in Ma'an. Early in 2005, the club applied to participate in the final phase of NEF's (Near East Foundation) Qudorat ("Capabilities") program, promoting more effective community development to combat poverty and unemployment.
Al-Farthakh was one of only 33 Qudorat finalists, community-based organizations selected from among 300 applicants. Club members participated in a rigorous, 18-month, competitive, assessment, training and mentoring pr ... (more) |
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Reports From the Field ; Jordan - Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Runaway Success Stories: Qudorat Retail Stores Sell Community Spirit
By Kathy Sullivan, NEF Qudorat Consultant
If you live in Amman, the main problem when shopping for household appliances, furnishings and food is probably choosing among hundreds of retail outlets in the Jordanian capital. If you live in a rural area or even a smaller town like Jerash, keeping and setting up house is much more complicated.
Choices are limited--sometimes there is no choice but to travel to Amman or another big town to find what you need and then pay extra to have your purcha ... (more) |
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