Desiring to have smoke-free university campuses, the University of Petra, supported by the Ministry of Higher Education, spearheaded the foundation of The Alliance of Jordanian Universities against Tobacco and Smoking in 2015. The mission of the Alliance is to promote and support the adoption and implementation of tobacco-free policies at universities; in addition, it aims at educating students about the harmful effects of smoking and second-hand smoking and providing a healthy environment for university students.
Initially, there were seven founding- member universities, namely the University of Petra, Jordan University, Yarmouk University, Science and Technology University, Princess Sumaya University for Technology , The Middle East University and The World Islamic Science & Education University. Al al-Bayt University, The Hashemite University, Al Tafeleh Technical University, The Applied Science Private University, Isra’ University, The American University of Madaba, the Arab University College of Technology and Jadara University joined the Alliance at a later stage.
The Middle East University has withdrawn from the Alliance.
The Alliance collaborates closely with the Ministry of Health, King Hussein Cancer Centre, World Health Organization, public health advocates, NGOs and other concerned citizens across Jordan with the aim of enforcing the laws that ban the use of tobacco on college campuses and in public places.
Professor Adnan Badran is the honorary president of the Alliance; the president of the Alliance is elected for a three-year term and since its founding and to date the president is Zeinab Kailani, Ph.D, head of the Anti-Smoking Committee at the University of Petra.
The University of Petra is the official headquarters of the Alliance.
The vision of the Alliance is to create healthy tobacco-free campuses that reflect positively on the health and wellness of our youth and on our society.