U.S.-SPONSORED WORKSHOP HELPS TO ESTABLISH VISION AND SET

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 004628 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/ELA, NEA/RA, AND OES STATE PASS TO USAID EPA FOR INTERNATIONAL/MEDEARIS USDA FOR FOREST SERVICE/INTERNATIONAL INTERIOR FOR INTERNATIONAL/WASHBURNE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SENV ETRD EAID PGOV JO SUBJECT: U.S.-SPONSORED WORKSHOP HELPS TO ESTABLISH VISION AND SET PRIORITIES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL RANGERS REF: A. AMMAN 3565 ¶B. 06 AMMAN 7727 ¶1. Summary: In a strong interagency showing, five USG agencies collaborated to hold a November 12-15 workshop for the Ministry of Environment's (MOE) one-year old enforcement corps of environmental Rangers. With over 50 participants on each of the three days, the workshop resulted in a draft strategic plan with a long-term vision statement and supporting goals/objectives in six areas: Organizational Structure and Approaches; Role of the Ranger; Expansion and Coverage; Training; Integration and Cooperation; and Public Awareness. The workshop opening, with welcoming remarks by Jordan's Minister of Environment, a senior officer from Jordan's national police, and the DCM, received wide media coverage. The U.S. will provide further capacity-building support to the Rangers, based on the key needs identified in the workshop. End summary. U.S. Agencies Share Best Practices -------------- ¶2. Five USG agencies - DOS, USAID, EPA, the U.S. Forest Service, and the National Parks Service - participated in the November 12-15 Environmental Rangers Strategy Workshop funded by DOS and USAID, with additional contributions from the Jordanian Ministry of Environment. USG representatives shared their environmental law enforcement experiences, and noted that while the Rangers have the mandate to enforce Jordan's environmental laws, in the U.S. this responsibility is shared by several federal (EPA, USFS, and National Parks Service),state and local law enforcement agencies. Through the sharing of an array of USG experiences, the Rangers were provided a broad spectrum of USG best practices in environmental law enforcement. A Comprehensive Approach to Drafting a Coordinated Plan -------------- -------------- ¶3. A professional facilitator from the U.S. managed the workshop proceedings with the assistance of two local facilitators. As many as 50 Rangers from the headquarters and 11 branch offices participated in the first two days of the workshop, brainstorming on the key goals in six strategic areas: Organizational Structure and Approaches; Role of the Ranger; Expansion and Coverage; Training; Integration and Cooperation; and Public Awareness. On the final day of the workshop, twenty stakeholders from other Jordanian government agencies, academia, and the NGO community participated and provided their feedback, a critical step in ensuring buy-in for the resulting strategy. Results of the six workshop sessions were consolidated into a draft strategic plan during a final, bilateral working session, in which Environment Minister Khaled Irani participated, to summarize key results and prioritize next steps. The Rangers also outlined their key capacity building needs which will be reviewed by the USG for future support. An Ambitious 2014 Vision -------------- ¶4. The preliminary vision statement for 2014 included goals for full geographic coverage of Jordan by the Rangers, instilling a high level of environmental awareness and education among citizens of the country, promoting clean city streets, and securing citizen commitment to protecting the environment. The vision also included steadily decreasing the number of environmental violations, and having in place by 2014 a well entrenched legislative and judicial system for prosecuting environmental cases. Additionally, the Rangers would be seen throughout the Middle East as the "go-to source" for capacity building because of their regional training center. ¶5. Strategic priorities to support the vision included raising environmental awareness in society; building environmental coalitions across government and civil society; strengthening the capabilities of the Rangers; creating an organizational structure to support the Rangers' mission; building a strong training capacity; and, recruiting more Rangers for increased geographic coverage. Key short-term goals to be achieved in the 2008-2010 window include realignment of the Rangers into two technical areas: environmental pollution and natural resources protection. Other goals include establishing environmental enforcement procedures for different types of cases and developing a Rangers' handbook with operating procedures; developing an in-house capability for public relations and awareness-building within the Rangers; and establishing new branch offices in geographic areas not yet covered by the Rangers. AMMAN 00004628 002 OF 002 Next Steps -------------- ¶6. There was agreement that the draft strategic plan reflected the proceedings of the workshop. However, participants also recognized that the plan needed further refinement by the Rangers and MOE officials. Post will monitor the progress of the plan finalization, and when appropriate, recommend a DVC with interagency participants in Washington to review the final plan. At that juncture, it would be appropriate to develop plans for further USG capacity building assistance for Jordan's Environmental Rangers. Visit Amman's Classified Web Site at http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman HALE