SINGAPORE: Jordan’s King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussein was received by President Tony Tan Keng Yam at the Istana on Monday.
Both leaders affirmed the excellent bilateral relations between Jordan and Singapore, which are underpinned by high-level exchanges.
Noting that both countries face similar challenges due to their small populations and limited natural resources, Dr Tan said there is scope for sharing experiences and exploring new areas for collaboration.
He later hosted a state banquet in honour of King Abdullah II.
Earlier, the Jordan king spoke at a roundtable organised by the Singapore Business Federation. He also visited the Institute of Technical Education College East.
Dr Tan said: “Our two countries share a common goal of promoting inter-faith dialogue and understanding. As a multi-racial and multi-religious society, it is important that countries such as ours should work together to promote tolerance among different religions, and encourage acceptance of and goodwill towards one another.
“This is an area in which Your Majesty has demonstrated global leadership. Your Majesty knows full well the dangers which extremism and radicalism can bring to a society. As a leader in the Arab and Islamic world, we believe Jordan plays an important role in promoting the message of tolerance and acceptance.”
Separately, Jordan’s Foreign Affairs Minister Nasser Judeh called on Second Minister for Foreign Affairs Grace Fu.
Both sides signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Human Resource Development under the framework of the Asia-Middle East Dialogue (AMED).
The MOU expands the scope of courses offered at the AMED Regional Vocational Training Centre (RVTC) to include economic development, public administration, sustainable development, trade facilitation and water management.
The RVTC was established by Jordan and Singapore in 2007 to assist in capacity-building for AMED member countries.
“Since 2007, this centre has trained close to 100 participants and serves as a symbol of bilateral cooperation in the area of capacity-building,” said Dr Tan.
source: channelnewsasia.com
