Enhancing law enforcement response to COVID-19 in Jordan I. Annual Progress : 
In May 2020, a contract was signed between the embassy of the kingdom of the Netherlands in Jordan and Penal Reform International to implement a project titled “Enhancing law enforcement response to COVID-19 in Jordan".
The project worked during its six months period on promoting safe access to justice during the pandemic, including individuals who come in contact with the law enforcement and police officers, inmates, juveniles, children accompanying their mothers in jails. The project has succeeded in protecting the rights of individuals who come in contact with the law, either because they committed a crime or because they want to report a crime, or had the need to visit police stations, or courts or other judicial institutions for any reason. 
The project targeted all the police stations, including the pre-trail hosting cells, as those cells are small, don’t have proper ventilation, and in most cases are overcrowded, and lack hygiene, in addition to the 13 Juvenile police stations.
Police officers who interact daily with the individuals who come in contact with the law were targeted to reduce the risk of being infected, and transferring the infection to their families. The same apply to the community police who was in need to interact with the community, responding to the Jordanian community needs during the lock down. 
Penal Reform International during the project has adopted a customized strategy to respond to the special needs of each category within the security system including the psychological, and physical needs, especially the most vulnerable segment of women, children accompanying their moms in prisons, juveniles. The project was able to provide a better health and justice solutions throughout the community. All which has resulted in a better functioning of the rule of the law system, and enhance the trust of individuals, and citizens in the police measures of maintaining health and safety.
The project direct beneficiaries are: The Public Security Directorate officers, including Juvenile police department, community police, individuals who comes in contact with the law and visit police stations, juveniles and children who comes with contact with the law and visit Juvenile police stations, male and female prisoners and children accompanying their mothers. 
Covid-19 pandemic has globally affected all countries and sectors since November 2019, Jordan and the security sector is part of this global pandemic, all the population which is in a direct interaction with the system-(The Public Security Directorate officers, including Juvenile police department, community police, individuals who come in contact with the law and visit the police stations, in addition to juveniles and children who visit Juvenile police stations, and  male and female  prisoners and children accompanying their mothers, were  at risk of being infected by the virus.
In Jordan there are 111 police station scattered across over the kingdom with an average of 84,000 visitors per month, also 17 prison institutions, with a total capacity of 13,352, and hold around 18,000 prisoners up till 20th of March 2020. The prisons were overcrowded, and the project activities came to support the national efforts, including supporting the initiative of the Judicial Council to take a decision of reducing overcrowding in prisons as an urgent response to reduce the rate of incarcerated personnel per prison to reduce the rate of spread of infections among inmates, and prison staff., the project also supported the prison department initiative to protect inmates and build an independence vis a vis the response to the pandemic , and create a production chain of safety gates.  On 24th of March 2020 the Judicial Council took a decision of an immediate release for all prisoners with a judgment less than 2 years and replacing the imprisonment with a ban on travel, including drug offenders. In addition to decision of not detaining any financial related crimes that amounts to less than (140,000 USD), replacing that with a ban on travel, and released all prisoners that fall under the same category of crime from prisons with a ban on travel. 

As a result, for these measures around 6000 prisoners were released from prisons to reduce the prison population from 18,000 to 12,642 prisoners according to official statistics of Correctional and Rehabilitation Centers (CRCs) on the 6th of April 2020. Additionally, CRCs took a set of preventive measures inside the prisons that included allocating one prison only for new prisoners who will be detained all over Jordan (Al-Balqa prison). In an attempt to reduce the risk of infection spread which might be coming with new prisoners coming from outside the prisons. So, no new prisoners will be entering any of the prisons facilities that already had prisoners before, until they are quarantined for some time in Al-Balqa prison first. This will enable the CRCs to reduce the risk of infection spread that might come from outside the prisons, and maintain the health of inmates, prison staff, and their families at homes. The project was implemented within the planned timeline, based on MoU’s and field inspection and follow up. 
PRI provided a rapid support for the Public Security Directorate and the Correctional and Rehabilitation Centers including Women Correctional and Rehabilitation Centers, along with the Juvenile police department to response to COVID -19 pandemic. The project was able to achieve the following outcomes and outputs as follows: 



Outcome No. 1:
New behavioral and attitudinal practices adopted within the security system (represented mainly within the CRC and PSD, juvenile’s department boundaries) for responding to the COVID-19.
PRI has developed a guideline which was adopted by the PSD, and the CRCs, including preventive measures in line with the WHO standards, to ensure safety of the police staff, individuals who come in contact with the law and the community in general. The PSD took new measures to respond to COVID-19 that were discussed in different meetings with PRI which included:
•	Family visits suspended  in order to reduce the dangers of the contact with the contaminated outside world. 
•	Virtual courts, which allowed an online adjudication of cases.
•	Immediate release of inmates with cases adjudicated up to two years, replacing it with a ban on travel, as an effort to end overcrowding.
•	Appointing Al-Balqa prison to be the only prison for admitting new prisoners, keeping them for a minimum of two weeks, to ensure  that they  are negative COVID-19 cases prior transferring them into other  prisons across the kingdom.

Outcome No. 2: 
Self-sufficiency approach through positively involving the prisoners adopted within the security system for securing the logistical and supply needs in emerging crisis. 
The following outcome was achieved through utilizing the principle of give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime’, involving the prisoners in manufacturing sanitization gates at Al-Swaqa prison, then distributing them at all main entrances of  police stations, juveniles police departments and CRCs reaching  94.3% of self-sufficiency of those gates for the security sector as a whole.  The experience of involving the inmates in the production process of the sanitation gates has raised their confidence level, as they contributed in the national efforts towards combating the pandemic.
As the total number of police stations (111), juvenile police centers (13), and prisons (17) all across Jordan equaling  141., Producing 133 sanitation entrance gates, contributed to 94% of the total PSD needs. 
Outcome No. 3:
Trust is enhanced, and made stronger due to the measures taken by the PSD to sustain access to safe justice and protect right to health and reach out to the community through community policing with positive messages, raising awareness of the public, and defending the public  right to health. 
The Trust between the Jordanian society and the PSD has been enhanced, as a result of a set of activities delivered by PRI jointly with PSD which was promoted through national TV and social media platforms, radio broadcasting  .The trust gained by the Jordanian citizens can be demonstrated in two main proxy indicators:
-The number of people that accessed the police stations has increased, or was not affected by the pandemic, in comparison with the same period of the previous year, which shows that the Jordanian community has the trust to go to the police stations when they need to get a service or have to report for a crime to those centres. 
In the first three months of the lockdown and the domestic abuse crime rate increased by 33%, compared to the same time the year before. The stress level increased with a 1685 new domestic abuse cases made in the first three months of the lockdown including physical, sexual, and physiological abuses which caused the reported cases to increase at the police stations. .The citizens felt safe reporting their complains to the nearest police station to their homes, as they trust  the justice system, and   the PSD in protecting  their right. 

In addition, the evaluation done with the direct beneficiaries from the One-Body initiative, shows the enhancement of the trust as the following statistics prove:

According to a survey done with the direct beneficiaries of the 141 food parcels, 130 (92%) went to the police station to collect the parcels. Nine (6%) had the parcel delivered to their houses. 2% did not respond to the question. Of the 130 that went to the police station, seven had already been to the station before. 123 (95%) had never been to the police station before (36 or 29% Jordanians; 87 or 71% Syrians). One respondent specifically mentioned that due to living with physical handicap they were not able to go to the police station to collect the parcel, and therefore had it delivered.

Almost all (97%) of the respondents reported feeling "completely safe" when receiving the food parcel.  93% were "completely satisfied" with the distribution process. The 6% who were not satisfied did not provide a reason, although there were some remarks regarding the lack of shade at the distribution site or disorganised  distributions at first stages.  
When asked "Has your perception of the police been impacted?" 94% reported it had for the better, 6% reported no change and 1% for the worse.

Outputs:
Output 1.1: 
PRI managed to develop an educational campaign through creating awareness posters which promotes in easy language with photos the protective and preventive measures that should be taken and followed by the staff and the individuals who visited the police stations . 2000 posters were designed, printed out and distributed among all police stations including the Juvenile departments across the Kingdom. 
1400 posters were created targeting adults, and 600 child friendly poster taking into consideration a gender sensitive language in the design of the poster’s instructions and precautions measures 
(See Annex. No. 1 & 2) 

Output 1.2: 
PRI in cooperation with the public security directorate developed a practical guideline on the response to COVID-19 at the police station’s level, based on the International Standards for Human Rights, WHO, OHCHR health instructions, and Child Rights Committee (CRC) and in line with the Jordanian laws and regulations. .. This guideline serves as a directive tool for the daily procedures that should be undertaken by the police station officers, including topics related to how to  mitigate the potential risks  resulting from COVID-19 to staff and individuals who come in contact with the law, in addition to preventative measures when dealing with COVID-19, starting at the external gates of the institutions. (See Annex No. 3)

Output 2.1: 
During the project lifetime PRI supported the PSD in creating a vocational training production line to produce the sanitation gates inside AL-Swaqa prison. PRI coordinated with PSD the production of the sanitation gates inside the prison involving  the inmates as part of supporting their rehabilitation, part of the national  efforts taken by the government to fight COVID-19.  

A capacity building workshop on the vocational programme for the benefit of 45 prisoners was organised at the beginning of the project aiming at teaching the prisoners how to produce the gates. 
133 sanitation entrance gates produced  and  used at the entrance  of 111  police  station, 13 juvenile police stations, and prisons in Jordan including the female prisons. 
To make sure that the workshop is sanitized properly and there is no risk for COVID-19 infection
PRI provided the safety equipment for everyone involved, including special masks, safety gears, gloves that the prisoners will be wearing during the production phases of the gates

Output 2.2:
To make sure that individuals who come in contact with the law have the minima level of protection when they enter stations, and that police officers have the same level of protection and don’t fear the risk of spreading the infection to their families while they are on duty, PRI provided Hygienic supplies for the PSD including 175,800 disposable pairs of gloves, 46,000 reusable face masks, and 487,450 surgical face masks for the benefit of 13,320 officers working at 111 police stations, in addition to 420 officers working with Juveniles at 13 police stations and over 300,000 individuals who visited the police stations during the life of project. 
In addition PRI run a sanitation campaign  inside all police stations in Jordan, and juvenile police stations, including at the pre-trial stage cells, which the detainees stay in during the investigation phases. 
The launch took place in September with the participation of the representative of the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherland. (See Annex No. 4) 

Output 2.3: 
PRI launched the project in May 2020 in the presence of her excellency the ambassador of Netherlands in Jordan who provided 450 women prisoners with  hygienic materials in order to respond to their specific needs and protect their rights to health.
400 pack of antibacterial wipes, 6750 pack of pads and 3270 soap bars were distributed. (See Annex No. 5)
 
Output 3.1: 
PRI  partnered with Siren to ensure that the role of Community police will still be active during the lockdown across the country. PRI   provided Siren with 100,000 disposable sanitized gloves and 10,000 reusable face mask  which were distributed to the community police to guarantee that the safety measures are maintained during the distribution of food parcels for families who are in need in North Amman within the One Body Community Initiative, Shoulder to Shoulder Project implemented by Siren. 

Output 3.2: 
PRI in collaboration with the PSD produced a five minutes documentary showing the main measures, and practices made by the Public Security Directorate PSD and the Correctional, & Rehabilitation Centers CRCs, in responding to COVID-19 and the main lessons learnt during the process. The broadcast was published among different media channels, official TV, and social media platforms as part of  the project promotion, which in return increased the trust of the Jordanian community of the PSD measures taken to sustain access to justice and protect individual’s right to health. This guaranteed the visibility of the Dutch government contribution, and support to Jordanian population in fighting COVID-19. (See Annex No. 6) 

Output 3.3: 
PRI organized a session with key personnel from the public security directorate, and some prisoners and other representatives of international NGOs, and prison directorate, during which,  the main project outcomes were presented including the main measures taken to respond for COVID-19 in Jordan within the security eco-system, and how those measures have contributed to enhancing access to justice and law enforcement rule in protecting the right to health during quarantine. IV. Risks and bottlenecks 
Risks related to context:
Governmental well and priorities: PRI has ensured continuous communication channels with the PSD high officials  which enabled a smooth implementation of the project activities utilizing mutual efforts and resources, accordingly all the interventions were implemented in agreement  with the PSD priorities and the governmental regulations related to the defence orders.
Risks related to programming:
Lack of social acceptance for behavioural change and responding for the health preventive measures by the prisoners or their relatives: PRI have designed the awareness campaigns and advocacy activities with relevance to the targeted audience needs and comprehension levels of the main preventatives measures regarding COVID-19, accordingly the awareness posters were designed with a very simple language along illustrative symbols of the actions to be taken. Also, women and children were not excluded as the design of the posters was gender sensitive, along a special design made for the children. 
Risks related to the organization: 
Anti-fraud and anti-corruption policy within the organization: PRI has adopted its’ bribery and an anti-corruption policy, including its’ various financial procedures and controls, during the implementation of the project activities, PRI has used its’ legal ways of providing financing to the partners in Jordan. Along to, ensuring the on-going monitoring mechanism, of resources and expenditures via budget financial controls.
Organization structure and culture: Penal Reform International is an international non-governmental organization working on penal and criminal justice reform worldwide.  PRI has regional offices and programmers in the Middle East and North Africa, Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the South Caucasus. Also, PRI work with partner organizations in other parts of Africa and, using a variety of approaches, on penal reform issues in Asia, North and Latin America and the Caribbean. PRI has Consultative Status with the United Nations (ECOSOC) and the Council of Europe, and Observer Status with the African Committee on the Right and Welfare of the Child, the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, and the Inter-Parliamentary Union. PRI is also a registered civil society organization with the Organization of American States (OAS).PRI works with governments, and civil society to improve conditions of detention.  PRI promotes greater transparency and accountability in the criminal justice and penal systems through holistic policy development and legal reform, including encouraging reform processes aimed at humanising juvenile justice, detention conditions and implementing rehabilitation programmes, the development and implementation of international human rights instruments in relation to law enforcement and prison conditions, the elimination of unfair and unethical discrimination in all penal measures. PRI’s work involves cooperation and collaboration with governments, other official authorities and non-governmental partners, which helps PRI, maintains impartiality, sustainability and builds trust with all of its partners.
PRI covers the Middle East and North Africa region from its Jordan office. It has been working in this region for 14 years now, covering 13 countries.

Monitoring, evaluation and management quality: PRI has developed a project monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL) system to track the results of the project. The MEL system has included: A theory of change which shows the logical linkages and assumptions between the goal, results, outputs and activities.
A monitoring framework with results statements, milestones, targets and identified data collection sources.  The project team have systematically collect data to track the indicators at outcome and output level utilizing various data collection tools and reporting templates.  

Financial and administrative management: As an international NGO with 30 years of history, PRI has well-established financial management mechanisms for its programmatic activity.  In the first instance, a day-to-day financial administration for the project has be undertaken by the MENA finance manager, with the oversight of the Project Manager.  The MENA finance manager has reported on a monthly basis to the Regional Director and Financial Director in London, who oversees the whole financial transactions of the MENA office. Monthly reports on the financial performance of the project has been submitted to PRI home office. These are checked against financial projections which are agreed between the London and Regional Offices at the commencement of any programme. 
 Major changes to the spending of the project are discussed between the Financial Managers and the Regional Director. 


V. Sustainability:

Self-sufficiency approach and positive investment in the prisoners was utilized during the phases of the current project, which guarantees sustainability, as the relation between PRI, the PSD and CRC is not supplier to consumer relationship rather a supplier to supplier relationship, which means that PRI is not acting as a direct provider of technical services and logistical support for a final consumer institution, but rather for an institution which will act as a supplier of new products. And this is guaranteed, through the vocational and reintegration programs prompted inside the prisons. From that time onward ,the prisoners started manufacturing the needed Sterilization Machines, to be used for preventing the spread of COVID-19 in all the police stations and juvenile police department and CRCs all across Jordan.

Visibility 
PRI has worked during the implementation of the project on guaranteeing the visibility of the donor, through continuous communication and coordination between the project manager and the embassy staff prior publishing or printing or distributing any materials to the public, either in a tangible and/or electronic format, and ensuring a  proper branding for the kingdom of Netherlands logo per the instructions and regulations embedded by the embassy.
This has covered the publications produced during the project timeline-(ex. The health protocol, Awareness Posters), and the digital outreach (ex.  PRI official Facebook page, local News channels, Radio Broadcasting), as well as the advocacy activities through the documentary produced in partnership with the PSD aiming at communicating the shared results and illustrating the impact of the contributions. In addition, all tangible aids provided for the PSD and CRCs were properly branded with the logo of the embassy including the sanitation gates, face masks and gloves packages, gender sensitive products packages, sanitizing products packages, COVID-19 medical apron packages.