jordan pulse -

A Jordanian-Syrian higher education dialogue forum opened at the German Jordanian University as part of a project aimed at supporting, enhancing and modernizing Syria’s higher education system sustainably, in cooperation with Jordanian and German institutions.

The project is backed by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and funded by Germany’s foreign ministry, reflecting Berlin’s commitment to supporting the development of higher education and strengthening international academic cooperation.

Syria’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Marwan Halabi stressed the importance of academic openness and building strategic partnerships to improve the quality of education and research.

German Deputy Ambassador Guido Kemmerling reaffirmed his country’s commitment to supporting Syria during its transition, highlighting the role of international cooperation and academic exchange in strengthening and developing the higher education sector.

President of the German Jordanian University Ala'aldeen Al-Halhouli said the university was keen to play an active role in supporting and developing Syria’s higher education sector at this stage by providing an institutional platform for academic dialogue and fostering cooperation among stakeholders.

During a high-level panel titled "Alliance for Syrian Higher Education," Jordan’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Azmi Mahafzah, his Syrian counterpart Marwan Jameel Halabi, Al-Halhouli and DAAD Director for Transnational Education and Cooperation Stefan Bieneveld discussed opportunities for integration between higher education systems in the three countries and explored prospects for building strategic academic alliances to support development and regional cooperation.

The session formed part of efforts to translate the project’s objectives into a strategic dialogue aimed at shaping an effective alliance framework to help revitalize Syria’s academic environment and strengthen its capacity for renewal through sustainable cooperation based on knowledge and expertise exchange.

A closed-door session also brought together presidents of Jordanian public universities and their Syrian counterparts to discuss mechanisms for academic networking and building direct partnerships between institutions, with a focus on advancing cooperation in education, scientific research and the exchange of academic and administrative expertise.

Vice President for International Affairs at the German Jordanian University and project director Ralf Roskopf outlined the project’s goals, including organizing dialogue events between ministry representatives and university presidents in Jordan and Syria, as well as stakeholder meetings in Amman and Brussels; workshops; training programs; and academic and administrative mentoring for Syrian staff, in addition to two scientific conferences.

He said the activities were based on an evidence-driven methodology drawing on interviews and field observations collected during a fact-finding mission conducted by the university in Syria, alongside a subsequent survey and findings from a study carried out by the German-Syrian Research Society (DSFG) in Germany in 2025.

President of the Accreditation and Quality Assurance Commission for Higher Education Institutions (AQACHEI) Dhafer Al-Sarayrah took part, underscoring the body’s key role in promoting accreditation and quality standards, ensuring competitive educational outcomes at regional and international levels, strengthening academic governance, supporting continuous improvement and aligning programs with labor market needs.