PM: Jordan will enhance cooperation with UNDP

Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour said on Tuesday that his government recognised the United Nations Development Programme's (UNDP) support of Jordan's development efforts and the Kingdom is keen to work closely with the U.N. agency. In a meeting with the assistant administrator and director of the UNDP Regional Bureau for Arab States, Sima Bahouth, Ensour reviewed challenges facing Jordan as a result of the Syrian crisis, noting that the Kingdom had received about 550,000 Syrian refugees since the conflict in its neighbouring country began. The exodus, he pointed out, had placed enormous pressures on the Kingdom's limited resources and local communities across the country. Bahouth said she recognised the magnitude of the burdens in hosting the refugees, pledging that the UNDP would cooperate with the Jordanian government and concerned organisations to enhance their capabilities to deal with the rising pressures due to the refugees. She also emphasised the importance of coordination and partnership between the governmental agencies and the UNDP regarding aid for the Syrian refugees and the host communities.