Since 1951, when Mr. L.D. Schweng, FAO/TA expert in Agricultural Economics drew the attention of FAO to the possibilities of inland fishery development in Jordan, a number of specialists have made brief surveys of the feasibility of fish culture in the country (Schuster, 1953; Quistorff, 1955; Chimits, 1956; Job, 1960; Thurow, 1962; Simpson, 1962). The need for experimental studies with expert assistance was recognized, but it was not until 1964 that the Government of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan made a formal request for the assignment of an expert by FAO under the United Nations Development Program/Technical Assistance (UNDP/TA) for a period of 18 months during the biennium 1965–66, to assist in:
determining the feasibility and economics of fresh- and brackish-water fish culture in the inland waters in Jordan by:
establishing and operating an experimental fish farm in Wadi Yabis or other suitable area,
surveying the diverse inland waters in Jordan and assessing their suitability and availability for fish culture, and
studying the status of biological productivity in the available waters and the possibilities of enhancing it on economic lines;
formulating and initiating fish production programs on profitable lines in selected waters;
reviewing the Jordan fisheries law (No.25 of 1943) and bringing it up-to-date and effective as may be necessary;
programming and arranging for the training of local personnel both on the spot and abroad, and
establishing the nucleus of a Fisheries Department within the Ministry of Agriculture in Jordan.
Mr. K.M. Apostolski, Director, Fisheries Institute of the S.R. of Macedonia, Skopje, Yugoslavia, was appointed by FAO as the expert under the project and he took up the assignment on 20 November 1965. After briefing at FAO Headquarters in Rome, he arrived in Jordan on 8 December 1965 and was attached to the Research Department. His assignment was till December 1966, but it was anticipated that if the initial studies indicated the need, the assignment would be extended through the succeeding biennium. Even though the Government asked for such an extension late in 1966, subsequently it requested a program change. The expert returned to FAO Headquarters on 19 December 1966 and the project was terminated with effect from 31 December 1966.
Mr. Hazem Zo'bi, Superintendent, Agricultural Station at W. Faraa was assigned as counterpart to the expert, but due to his inability to work in Amman, where the expert was based, he could not carry out his counterpart functions effectively. Mr. Salem Shamee, Loan Inspector at the Agricultural Credit Corporation, was therefore assigned as a full-time counterpart from May 1966 and proved helpful in the implementation of the project, but unfortunately left the project in August 1966. Mr. Hamdan Dabaj, an Agronomist, was then assigned as full-time counterpart from September 1966 and worked with the expert till he left the country in December 1966.
