Tuesday, a new community digital center was inaugurated in Ma’an governorate in partnership with the Ministry of Youth and funded by the European Union, the event was attended by the Minister of Youth, Mohammad Salameh Nabulsi, CEO of Orange Jordan, Thierry Marigny, and EU Ambassador to Jordan, H.E. Maria Hadjitheodosiou, as part of the Innovation Space, a three-year program co-funded by the EU’s Innovation for Enterprise Growth and Jobs program; “Innovate Jordan”.

The EU co-funded center falls under the partnership of the EU with Orange Jordan and the Ministry of Youth. As part of this project component, Orange will rehabilitate training rooms inside three youth centers in Ma’an’s City Centre and Al Shobak, as well as Irbid Governorate, and transform them into “Orange Community Digital Centers.”

By renovating and equipping these youth centers, with the cooperation of the Ministry of Youth, the project aims to increase the number of young people in these communities who benefit from ICT training programs and contribute to enhancing their employability and entrepreneurial opportunities.

Additionally, nine digital centers will be set up to nurture Jordan’s nascent digital economy and innovation culture. The project also aims to boost social inclusion, with a special attention to women and youth.

Minister of Youth, Mohammad Salameh Nabulsi, stated that the ministry is exerting all efforts to support and establish digital centers and pioneering projects, to implement the 4th pillar of the national youth strategy “Youth, Entrepreneurship and Economic Empowerment," which aims to establish and develop the work environment for youth to support creativity, innovation, and entrepreneurship to advance the social entrepreneurship and to deal with the unusual challenges, enable youth and the workers in this field with digital skills.

According to the EU Ambassador to Jordan, H.E. Maria Hadjitheodosiou, “what makes Innovation Space an important programme is its focus on a key segment that holds the future of Jordan, the country’s youth. This programme is particularly relevant to a distinctive governorate like Ma’an, where nearly 1000 bright young women and men can benefit from skills and entrepreneurship programmes to be able to join the local ICT job market and even create their own opportunities, and shape an economy based on science, technology and innovation.”

CEO of Orange Jordan, Thierry Marigny, affirmed the importance of the Community Digital Centers, which are witnessing an increase in number and reach across the Kingdom in cooperation with its partners and the European Union’s support, to equip youth with the needed labor market skills and prepare them to create their projects, as part of the company’s continuous efforts to enhance digital inclusion and education for employment.

The EU-funded "Innovation Space" is a pioneering initiative in Jordan and a one-stop-shop for digital innovation and entrepreneurial support. It will introduce digital culture to the youth, foster digital skills, and promote and nurture entrepreneurship by identifying key opportunities for digital economic growth.