Amman, March 2 (Petra) - Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Azmi Mahafzah called for working at maximum speed to prepare financial plans for public universities for the years 2026–2029 in line with the Economic Modernization Vision, including specific measures within a defined time frame and performance indicators that allow monitoring the implementation of the plan and evaluating university performance.

During his meeting on Monday with the presidents of public universities, Mahafzah stressed the necessity for universities to commit to paying their monthly contributions to the Social Security Corporation regularly and the need to obtain prior approval from the Prime Minister before making any administrative appointments of all types.

During the meeting, Mahafzah reviewed the decisions recently taken by the Council of Ministers, which included approving the government’s assumption of 50 percent of the dues owed by public universities to the Social Security Corporation, to be paid over the next three years.

He pointed out the approval to exempt public universities from the debts owed to the Accreditation and Quality Assurance Commission, provided that the public universities commit to taking practical and clear measures to address stagnant and saturated academic disciplines by gradually stopping admissions to specializations proven to have declining demand or weak alignment with labor market needs, restructuring them, updating their study plans, and transforming them into qualitative tracks or applied specializations, while ensuring the development of faculty members’ capabilities in a way that enhances employment opportunities and supports the national economy with high-quality expertise.

//Petra// AF