Background: This City is 20kms from Syrian Border and surrounded by Iraq and Saudi Arabia and is   70km from Amman. There are 2,500 Christians in a population of 75,000. The parish has a secondary school that contains classes until the 10th grade only; pupils of Mafraq continue their high school education in the neighbouring villages and cities.

The students are forced to be enrolled in non-Christian governmental schools where they do not study Christian education which forms a genuine dilemma. The beneficiaries of this project are the students who will not have to move to another school outside the City when they reach high school. It will also open new job opportunities for the teachers who will be teaching in the newly opened classes. We will fund the construction of a new building inside the parish compound to include three classrooms for the 11th and 12th grades, a teachers’ room, and bathrooms. We in Ireland have committed USD $78,690 for that purpose.

Background: the town of Safout is located 20 km northwest of Amman Jordan and is economically poor. Of the total population of 15,000 inhabitants, there are 1,750 Christians, of which 160 are Catholic Christians.  The population consists mostly of employees and workers who commute daily to work in the cities of Fuheis, Salt and Amman.  The school is the smallest of all the Latin Patriarchate schools of the Patriarchal Diocese.

The problem: The school did not comply with the minimum health and safety standards.

Our input: With the generous donation of 50,000 Jordanian dinars received from the Irish Lieutenancy in 2020 as well as private donations and local contributions rehabilitation works were implemented to the building of the school to improve the situation of the classrooms, restrooms and the kitchen. The work included installation of suspended gypsum board, tiling, electrical and mechanical works.

Result: The serious safety and health concerns have been eliminated through the rehabilitation work. The duration of the project was from March 2020 until January 2021. The project required ten months to be completed due to the consequences of COVID-19 pandemic and the related lockdowns in Jordan.

Beneficiaries: The direct beneficiaries of the project are the students and teachers at the school who now attend their classes in a safe school meeting State health and safety standards; students’ parents are reassured since their children study in a safe and healthy classroom environment. The indirect beneficiary of the project is the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which strives to provide the best for the parishioners and all faithful, and to allow the continuity of the LPJ biblical mission in serving its communities in the Holy Land and Jordan.