Amman, June 30 (Petra) -- Minister of State for Public Sector Development Badria Al Balbisi on Tuesday inaugurated the "AI for Government Leaders" training program at the Prime Ministry, marking a strategic step under the kingdom's civil service modernization roadmap. The launch ceremony was attended by Minister of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship Sami Smeirat and the President of the Jordanian Academy for Government Administration (JAGA), Mustafa Hamarneh.

The six-month executive program targets secretaries-general and directors-general across key government bodies, including public finance, digital transformation, cybersecurity, statistics, public procurement, healthcare, social development, and regulatory oversight authorities. The initiative is implemented by JAGA in partnership with the "Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Economic Development and Employment in Jordan (E4DE)" project, executed by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) in collaboration with the Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship and GovCampus. The program is co-funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the European Union (EU).

Al Balbisi stated that the government has incorporated a dedicated emerging technology component into its second executive program for the Public Sector Modernization Roadmap (2026–2029). She added that a comprehensive reference framework and a competency matrix for integrating AI into the public sector have been established to guide administrative reform. Furthermore, the government is drafting a long-term future skills strategy, noting that global studies indicate that 60 percent of job roles will see transformed tasks within the next two to five years.

Minister Smeirat emphasized that Jordan places artificial intelligence at the forefront of its national priorities through the National Council for Future Technology. He revealed that the Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship aims to train 15,000 civil servants by 2027, having already trained over 9,000 employees from 90 government entities to lead digital transformation efforts. Smeirat highlighted existing national AI milestones, such as the AI educational assistant "Siraj," which has surpassed 1.3 million users, alongside ongoing applications in healthcare and digital civic services. To support data-driven decision-making, the government is actively strengthening its data ecosystem, processing over 2 million geographic records and linking more than 2.5 million land records.

Hamarneh affirmed that JAGA serves as the government's executive arm for capacity building and knowledge transfer. He stated that the academy's newly structured programs aim to elevate leadership capabilities in digitization, data systems, and the knowledge economy to directly improve institutional performance and the quality of public services.

The specialized curriculum spans six interconnected thematic pillars covering AI fundamentals for policymakers, responsible AI governance, institutional readiness, AI-powered government services, innovation ecosystems and public-private partnerships, and the broad economic impacts of artificial intelligence. The program aims to equip senior officials with the strategic insights and practical tools necessary to accelerate AI adoption, improve public service delivery, and build a more efficient and data-driven public sector.

//Petra// AF