As part of its ongoing support to Jordan to confront the COVID-19 outbreak, the EU will begin training Jordanian public institutions on the newly released "Back to Work” guidance to create safe workplaces when public servants return to work on May 26.

According to a statement made available to The Jordan Times on Wednesday, the EU said that it aims to train a total of 100 public institutions through its "Support for Improvement in Governance and Management” (SIGMA) project.

On Tuesday, the Prime Ministry circulated the "Back to Work” manual for government institutions — the "first of its kind” among SIGMA beneficiaries, the statement said. It provides the basis for a safe return to work by preparing employees to take preventative measures that will safeguard public health and sustain service delivery to citizens.

The manual — prepared for public sector departments, employees and recipients of public services — was developed by the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) in cooperation with the Institutional Performance and Policy Development Directorate at the Prime Ministry, the Institute of Public Administration and the EU-funded SIGMA project.

According to the statement, the "Back to Work” manual will help public bodies prepare a post-confinement operational roadmap and draft plans to manage the return to on-site work in ministries and agencies, which includes cleaning and disinfecting public facilities, developing roadmaps for gradual reactivation of service delivery, developing communication plans for both employees and citizens and creating monitoring mechanisms and feedback channels for continued improvement.

The manual can also be used as a reference for each institution to draft its own guidebook based on their specific needs.

Virtual training for human resources, administration, communications and performance development personnel will start on Thursday, the statement said. 

A joint initiative of the Organisation for Cooperation and Development and the EU and fully funded by the EU, SIGMA has been supporting the Jordanian Public Administration since 2008. During the COVID-19 outbreak, SIGMA provided support to the CSB to develop the "Teleworking Manual”, which provided practical guidance to civil servants on key issues related to information security, prioritisation of tasks and boosting their wellbeing at home, the statement concluded.