AMMAN (Petra) — HRH Highness Princess Basma on Wednesday announced that a part of the proceeds of the Queen Alia Social Work Competition for 2006 will be used to provide an appropriate scholastic environment for people with disabilities.

The allocation will also be used to support special education programmes in education directorates across the Kingdom, the Princess said during a ceremony held to honour the annual contest’s sponsors and winners.

The Princess, who is chairperson of the board of trustees of the Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development (JOHUD), highlighted reasons for choosing the Amman Message as the topic of the 2006 competition.

Jordan launched the Amman Message over two years ago to help clarify the position of Islam on extremism and define Muslims’ relationship with other cultures and faiths.

The document highlights the aspects of moderation, understanding and tolerance in traditional Islam.

JOHUD distributed questionnaires for the Queen Alia Social Work Competition at the beginning of 2006. Some 650,000 forms and leaflets were printed to raise awareness on the Amman Message, which seeks to portray the true image of Islam.

In an effort to create a positive impact on attitudes and perceptions concerning people with special needs, Princess Basma launched the Queen Alia Social Work Competition in 1995.

The annual contest, which takes the form of a quiz, focuses on raising general awareness through disseminating information on various social issues every year.

This national endeavour also raises funds to support children with special needs and provide them with education and services.

At the end of the ceremony, Princess Basma presented prizes to the competition winners.