Jordan—Municipal Support Program (MSP)

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated already precarious economic and governance conditions in Jordan. In 2021, unemployment spiked to 25 percent. The confluence of the pandemic and recurrent economic crisis has caused municipal revenues to decline sharply.

Mayors and municipal councilors, as the face of government accountability and public spending, assume outsized responsibility for government performance. However, with limited authority, these officials are not empowered to make decisions and set funding priorities. Many municipalities have the basic building blocks needed to strengthen services and pursue local economic development but lack the organizational culture required to apply them effectively. Recognizing that municipalities should serve as convenors, enablers, and facilitators of local economic development, mayors and municipal councilors must partner with the private sector and remove bureaucratic obstacles to investment, job creation, and local economic growth. Municipalities must capitalize on their existing assets in partnership with the private sector, while also delivering more efficient services that are responsive to community needs.

The USAID Municipal Support Program (MSP) works with municipalities across the Kingdom of Jordan to strengthen local administration and service delivery, increase capital investment, and pursue local economic development.

MSP assists individual municipalities while simultaneously implementing systemwide interventions that aim to transform the way municipalities do business—from financial management to climate mitigation and adaptation to private sector engagement. MSP supports municipal “clusters,” in which multiple municipalities share tools and resources to better serve their communities by utilizing improved systems and delivering visibly enhanced services and infrastructure.

Municipalities in each cluster collaborate with one another, with other Jordanian government stakeholders, and with the private sector to leverage and invest in existing assets that deliver cost-effective, sustainable services and economic growth. The project also facilitates the launch and sustainable management of private investments and public-private partnerships that deliver community-responsive services, mobilize revenue, and generate employment in municipalities.

Sample Activities

• Provide support to improve the legal environment for better service delivery and investment by reforming laws, bylaws, and other Government of Jordan legislation, including a draft of a new Municipal Financial Bylaw.
• Train municipal staff to utilize a new municipal Financial Management Information System to standardize and improve financial management processes across Jordan.
• Strengthen the Ministry of Local Administration, including the digitalization of municipal zoning maps and business process reengineering.
• Revitalize local economies through establishing local markets, beautification of streets, and renovating bus stations in various municipalities.
• Build the capacity of geographic information system units at municipalities.
• Establish regional vehicle fleet maintenance centers.
• Upgrade municipal solid waste management, and recycling facilities and introduce waste separation at source.
• Lower sector operational costs by enhancing municipal energy efficiency and renewable energy used by municipal buildings.
• Support municipal clusters to establish strong plans and mechanisms for coordinated climate resilience and emergency response.
• Support municipalities to attract investment through better planning and procurement, incentivize the private sector, and diversify financing mechanisms including public-private partnerships and Islamic Sukuk.

Select Results

• Advanced legal and policy reform for the municipal sector by drafting and amending laws and bylaws governing municipal financial management, building and property taxation, and land use.
• With a regional weather technology firm, launched a national early warning system to mitigate the impact of weather-related disasters, with a focus on flooding.
• Opened the Rayaheen Al Jannah Daycare in Greater Ma’an Municipality to address needs identified by a gender audit. It is the first in Jordan to be managed and operated by municipal staff and is part of an initiative to provide childcare to working families.
• Established a new weekly market in collaboration between Karak municipality, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, the Ministry of Culture, and a local nongovernmental group. Attracting thousands of visitors, the market showcases Karak’s cultural heritage while providing a dynamic new platform for small businesses and artisans in Karak to reach new customers.
• Upgraded the substation of Ma’an Vocational City, enabling Greater Ma’an Municipality to lease previously unpowered plots, generate rental income, and mitigate environmental impacts.
• In cooperation with the Ministry of Local Administration, introduced Municipal Investment Guidelines that provide a clear legal framework and comprehensive procedures for local-level PPPs and other investment instruments, helping municipalities more effectively pursue investment.
• Conducted energy audits for 11 partner municipalities and, based on the findings, provided technical assistance and material support including solar water heaters and more energy-efficient air conditioning units to reduce the municipalities’ carbon footprint and energy expenditures.