APN general coordinator Razan Zuayter attended a meeting of environmental groups held at Amman Chamber of Commerce. The meeting held on Dec.19th, 2019, was called by the minister of environment Saleh Al-Kharabsheh and attended by Osama Mrayyan the director of the Royal Department for Environment Protection.
AL-Kharabsheh briefed the meeting on the plan of action that the Ministry of Environment is working on, mainly environmental awareness, international cooperation, licensing, inspection and waste management procedures.
In her intervention during the meeting, Zuayter stressed the importance of institutionalizing and accumulating cooperation with civil society organizations working in the field of the environment to avoid the vacuum caused by the rapid and continuous change of environment ministers. She reviewed the programs implemented by APN in which the ministry can cooperate, especially 'If Only you knew' and "The Green Caravan” agricultural programs. She stressed the necessity of cooperation at the local and international levels and the exchange of expertise, pointing out that APN has multiple experiences as an observer member in various international platforms (UNEP \ FAO \ CFS \ IUCN).
Zuayter deplored the intensity and prevalence of smoking in the environmental meeting hall, asking, "Smoking is prohibited and is allowed here?" She wondered about the role of the ministry and the environment police in implementing the smoking ban law.