His Majesty King Abdullah on Sunday called for institutionalizing the role of youth in public life and ordered the creation of a fund to finance scholarships for college students.

Addressing the closing ceremony of the “We are All Jordan” Youth Commission's first conference, attended by key political, media and business figures and more than 800 members, the King announced the establishment of the JD2 million fund whose modus operandi as well as the entity in charge of it are to be specified at a later stage.

In his address to the participants at the conference, King Abdullah said: “The biggest challenge before you during the next phase is to institutionalize the role of youth in several fields, most importantly by building real partnerships with political institutions such as the government, Parliament and civil society institutions.”

If such a goal is achieved, he said, this would help polish youth skills and prepare effective and capable leadership “that is able to take initiative”, and work earnestly to build a country that boasts “ability, excellence, creativity and achievement”.

King Abdullah underscored the need to work on strengthening a culture of volunteerism among the young generation by identifying youth voluntary workdays in service of institutions that need support and assistance.

Such community work, the King said, helps foster the spirit of initiative and volunteerism among youth, and strengthens their relationship with society by allowing their direct interaction with its needs and problems.

Stressing his “limitless” support for the commission, the King said he personally followed up on all the activities and initiatives the youth commission has undertaken, especially those dedicated to supporting and funding youth creativity, excellence, entrepreneurialism and partnerships with local communities and job training opportunities.