Letter to Ali Abul Ragheb on the establishment of the King Abdullah II Award for Distinguished Governmental Performance and Transparency

In the Name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful,

Your Excellency Prime Minister Ali Abul Ragheb,

May God bless you,

It is with pleasure that we convey our greetings and sincerest wishes to you and to your fellow members of the Council of Ministers.

Our belief in the importance of investing in human beings, developing and attending to their capabilities, has always been profound. We have also been anxious to see our public institutions establish work ethics that reflect the modern concept of civil service. Civil service institutions have been established to respond to the needs of citizens and investors, by providing core services in a distinct and civilised manner that depicts our Arab-Islamic identity and legacy. Civil servants should distinguish themselves through their good conduct, amity, perfectionism, and flawless performance.

We indicated this clearly in our first Speech from the Throne in 1999, when we specified that our government shall proceed with concrete steps to restructure and modernise the administration, eliminate bureaucracy, update and simplify procedures and employ an institutionalised approach based on team work, thus opening the way for capable and innovative administrative personnel.

We take pride in the fact that three-quarters of the Jordanian public are young men and women who demonstrate allegiance to their Jordanian homeland and Arab nation. We aspire to provide this generation with the best services through the governmental institutions with which they deal. Our objective in this respect is to enhance the sense of belonging and good citizenship and to stress that civil service is an arena for excellence, giving, commitment and precision.

Thus, we project a bright image of Jordan to whomever deals with Jordanian institutions, whether from within the country or abroad.

Trusting in the Almighty God, I have decided to employ this understanding of civil service by encouraging civil servants to raise their performance standards and firmly establish transparency. Furthermore, I have decided to establish an award, called the “King Abdullah II Award for Distinguished Governmental Performance and Transparency,” with the aim of enhancing the public sector’s role in serving all sectors of Jordanian society, as well as the investment community. This will be accomplished through raising awareness of the concepts of comprehensive quality management and distinguished performance. The award will highlight the exceptional efforts of public sector institutions and show their accomplishments in developing their own systems and services. We intend for this prize to be the highest prize for excellence in the public sector at the national level.

I have entrusted His Royal Highness Prince Faisal Bin Al Hussein with the task of chairing this award's board of trustees, which shall have the Chief of the Royal Hashemite Court as its deputy chairman. Other members of the board of trustees shall be: the Minister of Social Development; the Secretary General of the Prime Ministry; His Excellency Fadi Ghandour; and His Excellency Rifat Faouri. the Director of the Royal Court's Economic and Development Department, who shall serve as the board's rapporteur.

Within two months, this board shall submit a detailed report on the award programme. To do so, the board may seek help from local and international expertise in this area, in terms of the criteria, categories, evaluation mechanisms and the areas to be covered by the award. This shall be carried out in accordance with a gradual scheme that starts with some institutions directly involved in dealing with citizens and investors and proceeding progressively to cover all our governmental and public institutions.

I pray to the Almighty God to safeguard our beloved Jordan and to grant us success in our efforts to achieve the aspirations of our people for prosperity, progress and reaping the fruits of sustainable development for, as the Holy Quran says, "Be sure that God is your Protector — the best to protect and the best to help.” (Sura 8, Verse 40).

Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein
Amman, 4 September 2002