The Royal Scientific Society (RSS), in cooperation with the Harper Adams University in the UK, completed the implementation of all activities of the Project "Enhancing Food Security through Promoting Urban Farming Systems in Jordan” by the end of February 2021.

The project, funded by the Royal Academy of Engineering in the UK/Frontiers of Engineering for development programme, aimed at building systems for "Soilless Vertical Farming” in selected urban areas in Jordan and studying the ability of such systems to increase the resilience of poor urban communities to any unexpected external shocks by providing a sustainable food system model, according to a RSS statement.

The RSS team piloted three urban farming systems on the rooftops of different beneficiaries distributed in some urban areas in Jordan. 

The project team trained beneficiaries and some local community members from their neighbourhoods on the operation and maintenance of such systems and gave them the knowledge regarding the installation as well, said the statement. 

The project’s team then studied the social and economic short-term impacts of the installed urban farming systems on the beneficiaries and identified the potential social and economic constraints and opportunities of urban farming in the targeted areas.

The RSS, Jordan’s foremost applied research institution, consultancy, and technical support service provider, is a recognised regional leader in research and technical services in science, technology and engineering.

 At RSS, being customer-centric simply means having an "unwavering commitment” to the people of Jordan, read the statement.

Since it was founded in 1901, Harper Adams University has been designed to meet the food security challenge. Set on a 635-hectare farm, it is the leading specialist university tackling the future development of the planet’s food production, processing, animal sciences, engineering, land management and sustainable business.

The Royal Academy of Engineering is a charity that harnesses the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone, concluded the statement.