One of the most promising sectors identified in the pre-feasibility study for the GreenfieldCities business campus in Mafraq is the ICT sector. Within the framework of the feasibility study a concept of an ICT hub centered around a Post-Academic Training Institute has been developed. Together with Int@j (Jordan ICT association), GreenfieldCities organised a workshop for ICT companies. Aim: to test the concept and to collect input and feedback.

Mafraq region has many underutilized ICT talents, not able to find jobs in Mafraq in the absence of locally based ICT companies. Aiming for Amman, the ICT capital of Jordan, is often not possible for job seekers due to the costs of transportation, the exhausting daily commute and cultural barriers, especially for women. This pushes much talented youth into lasting unemployment (60% of ICT graduates), even after graduation at a Jordanian university.

GreenfieldCities aims to curb this trend by attracting ICT companies, start-ups and experts to the Mafraq business campus to create locally relevant and valuable ICT job opportunities in Mafraq with a Post-Academic Training Institute as its educational starting point. GreenfieldCities achieves this by delivering a comprehensive package of incentives, developed together with education partners and ICT companies, that includes: premium yet cost-effective infrastructure, professional skills training, technical ICT training, internships and job positions at one of the ICT companies on the campus. The business case for this approach looks positive for participating ICT companies.

The participating ICT companies in the workshop learned about the plans and shared their challenges, drivers and needs. As anywhere in the world, also Jordanian ICT companies look frantically for the right talents and opportunities to do business in an effective manner. GreenfieldCities organized the ICT workshop together with Int@j, the ICT association of Jordan. More information about the concept of the GreenfieldCities Business Campus ICT Hub can be found in a onepager