AMMAN — A Jordanian delegation of women leaders from finance, banking, and public sector institutions took part in an OECD forum in Paris focused on expanding women’s economic participation across the Middle East and North Africa.
The gathering, hosted Saturday at OECD headquarters, sits within an EU-backed initiative operating in eight Arab countries. The project targets financial inclusion, improved access to capital for women-led enterprises, and institutional reforms that support female entrepreneurship and investment.
Jordan’s representatives included Reem Badran, who oversees the project regionally across Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine. Thanaa Al-Khassawneh, CEO of the Business and Professional Women Association, joined alongside Samia Al-Samadi, a gender empowerment specialist with the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Women’s Empowerment. Lama Al-Samhouri, head of the Women’s Unit at the Central Bank of Jordan, and Balqees Al-Bahri, a diplomatic attaché at the Jordanian Embassy in Paris, rounded out the group.
During a session on financial literacy and banking access, Al-Khassawneh detailed Jordan’s national progress in strengthening businesswomen’s financial management and investment skills.
Meanwhile, the delegation visited Station F, Europe’s largest startup campus, to study its incubation framework, mentorship structure, and venture capital connections. The insights aim to shape Jordan’s national strategy for backing female-led startups.
The visit also included a meeting with Jordan’s Ambassador to France, Lina Al-Hadid, along with Jordanian women professionals working in Paris-based international organizations. Discussions centered on bilateral economic cooperation.
