The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has formally partnered with Jordan’s Department of Statistics (DOS).

His Majesty’s Ambassador to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, Ms Bridget Brind OBE signed the Memorandum of Understanding on behalf of the ONS while Zeina Toukan, Jordan’s Minister of Planning and international Cooperation signed on behalf of DOS. The event took place at the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation in Amman on November 16.

The two-year partnership follows the success of initial work between the two organisations during 2021 and 2022. The work included supporting the delivery of economic, social and political reforms set out in Jordan’s King Abdallah’s Vision 2033 which aims to strengthen Jordan’s public institutions and increase the Government of Jordan technical capacity.

The project between the ONS and DOS aimed to improve the availability, accuracy and timeliness of statistics for economic evidence-based decision making. This will contribute to Jordan’s ability to deliver on its ambitious reforms plan to preserve economic stability while stimulating inclusive growth, job creation and investment.

This work will now continue following the formal launch of the partnership.

This new programme of work has been launched following the success of the ONS’s existing peer-to-peer international development partnerships with Ghana Statistical Service, Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS), Namibia Statistics Agency (NSA), the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR) and the UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA).

The international development programme has seen the ONS supporting a wide range of developmental activities, including the modernisation of African censuses   Africa; working with Ghana Statistical Service on the introduction of remote data collection; and supporting the creation of a regional data science centre for East Africa led by NISR.

Cooperation with statistical organisations in the developing world helps to improve the availability and use of data to benefit people’s lives. Good data has the power to help decision makers reduce poverty and improve equality and access to services.

Organisations in ODA-eligible countries wishing to find out about UK statistical support can email international.development@ons.gov.uk
For more information about other collaborative opportunities, email international@statistics.gov.uk