National Service draws 1,573 applicants on first day of registration

AMMAN — The number of applicants for the National Service programme reached 1,573, including 711 males and 862 females, on the first day of registration, Labour Ministry Spokesperson Mohammad Khatib said on Tuesday.

Khatib said that 693 applicants from the central region applied for the programme, 548 from the northern region and 332 from the southern region, indicating that the registration process is moving along as planned.

The Ministry of Labour said on Monday that the executive committee had selected 131 locations where people could apply. 

The locations include the labour and employment directorates of the Ministry of Labour, in addition to the Vocational Training Institute/Vocational Training Corporation, the National Employment and Training Company and the Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development offices located in various governorates throughout the Kingdom.

The Ministry of Labour had also introduced a link that enables young people to register electronically, through a computer browser and smartphones.

The military training phase for the first batch of males and the vocational training phase for females will take place on March 3.

Last week, Prime Minister Omar Razzaz inaugurated the launch of the National Service programme, a top government priority for the years 2019-2020, to provide vocational training for some 20,000 Jordanian youth.

The new national programme is designed to substitute the old one, the only difference being that the new one is non-mandatory, according to Petra. 

The new programme is also aimed at supporting the national economy and supplying the market with qualified young personnel, while aligning the outputs of Jordan’s education systems — vocational and technical — with the needs of the labour market.

The National Service programme, in cooperation between the Labour Ministry and the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army, will provide vocational training in various fields of industry, construction and tourism, according to Petra.

The programme provides interns with a JD100 monthly allowance, a daily meal, medical insurance in cases of work-related injuries and covers transportation fees, as well as the costs of uniforms and the issuance of a professional licence by the Centre of Accreditation and Quality Control.

The 476-hour programme has two stages: One month of military training, to include fitness activities, morale guidance and values of discipline, and a three-month phase for practical and theoretical training in workshops and laboratories.

Overall, the programme is meant to equip trainees with a range of life skills, reinforced by courses on entrepreneurship and occupational health and safety.