Letter to Jordanian students on the occasion of the new scholastic year, 2004-2005

In the name of God, the Most Merciful, the Compassionate,

My Dear Sons and Daughters, the Students,

Peace, God's mercy and His blessings upon you,

It is with pleasure that I send to each and every one of you, as you return to school, my affection, pride and best wishes for the new scholastic year, a year that shall witness your achievement of your hopes and aspirations for a promising future, God willing.

I would like to affirm on this occasion, that you merit my august care and attention. You are the future, builders of tomorrow, through whom we aspire to achieve our vision for Jordan. We are making every possible investment in you to stimulate your creative energies and to provide you with opportunities for success that will allow your participation in building Jordan, as a model nation of justice, parity, and equal opportunities.

We have endeavoured earnestly over the past years to provide the right environment for the modernisation of education. That was to be realised through the empowerment of teachers, the development of educational curricula and activities, the enhancement of pre-school, and the construction of schools equipped with teaching aids and new technologies that are appropriate for the teaching and learning processes.

To achieve our goal of developing education and activating youth creativity, I have instructed the government to find a new mechanism for the General Secondary School Certificate (Tawjihi)– a mechanism that would protect the reputation of this national certificate and its regional and international distinction. I have also requested that it adopt a modern vision for a national certificate exam that enables students to excel and to be creative in a comfortable, scientific and healthy psychological climate.

I have also directed the minister of education to redesign the structure of secondary education according to modern criteria that gives students several choices and thus enables them to either join the labour market or to pursue higher studies in specialisations that students may have chosen in the secondary stage, and upon which his or her knowledge and experience was built.

I reiterate my feeling of pride in you, and in your teachers, and I hail the spirit of good citizenship and high responsibility, and your sense of belonging to the homeland, Jordan first and foremost. I also assure you that you shall remain the source of my confidence, hope, and determination to provide the right circumstances for you to achieve the future to which you aspire, a future in which you can achieve your aims, and the hopes of your parents and teachers that you would be armed with science, knowledge and noble values, which are the foundation of our Arab Islamic civilisation.

May God grant us success.

Peace, God’s mercy and His blessings upon you,

Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein
Amman, 28 August 2004