​The Erasmus+ International Staff Week 2023 kicked-off Monday at the University of Jordan (UJ) under the theme: "Transforming Technical and Vocational Education and Training for a Successful Transition".

The Fourth edition of the week comes with an unprecedented participation of 45 participants from 18 European universities belonging to 11 countries are Italy, Germany, the Czech Republic, Poland, the United Kingdom, Turkey, Slovenia, Spain, Cyprus, Norway and Romania.

The event, which was inaugurated by UJ Vice President for Administrative and Financial Affairs, Prof. Mohammed Shraideh, aims to strengthen mutual cooperation and ties, and discuss future plans in the field of Vocational education. It also aims to create further opportunities for faculty members and researchers to develop the international educational environment.

Shraideh said in his opening address: "the concept of internationalization is the first thing that springs to mind when thinking of a fertile ground for development everywhere", adding that the tendency towards international networking has become crucial and inevitable in the strategic planning of all institutions in all sectors, primarily including higher education.

For her part, EU Ambassador to Jordan Maria Hadjitheodosiou, emphasized the depth of the partnership relations between the EU and Jordan, Highlighting the importance of vocational training in boosting economic growth, stressing that the training and development of skills along with higher education remains a top priority for the European Union.

Vice President of the Accreditation and Quality Assurance Commission for Higher Education Institutions (AQACHEI), Prof. Zaid Al-Anbar noted the role of Jordan's National Qualification Framework in supporting the vocational education in Jordan, confirming that Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) is one of the critical drivers in the transformation of Jordan’s education system and a major contributor to economic growth.

Director of the International Affairs Unit, Prof. Hadeel Yaseen said that UJ has sought to strengthen cooperation ties with European universities since 2015 to consolidate its strategy towards internationalization and raise the quality of education and learning outcomes, explaining that the fruitful results of projects lead by UJ is evident through the success and development of students, academics and staff, as well as the remarkable increase in awareness gained by university communities.

The Week's program includes a number of activities aimed at academic, educational and research networking between the attending universities.