The royal spoke of the challenges facing Jordan – and his generation’s role in overcoming them.
He’s taken to the stage at the UN General Assembly and World Economic Forum, but even when speaking to a group of university students in his native country, Crown Prince Hussein’s message was just as powerful.
The 24-year-old royal delivered an impassioned speech to students at Al Hussein bin Talal University during a visit to its campus in Maan Governorate on Monday.
Crown Prince Hussein spoke openly of the challenges facing young Jordanians today, such as war, economic crisis, and unemployment.
“I do not claim that we have a magic wand to resolve all these complicated issues,” he began.
“I am fully aware that we – you and me together – are at the very beginning of our journey. However, I also realise that we live in a world unlike anything that previous generations have witnessed.”
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Hussein, who graduated from Washington, D.C.’s Georgetown University in 2016 and from the UK’s Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 2017, revealed he recently completed an internship programme with some of the world’s leading IT companies.
There were two things he took away from the experience, he said.
“First, we live in an era of self-reliance. Today, there are no public sector jobs ready to absorb our generation – opportunities are created by pioneers and entrepreneurs.
“Second, our generation is the one tasked with and qualified to take Jordan into the future – where opportunities are created through bold ambition, innovation and entrepreneurship.
“I know my fellow young Jordanians very well. We will not settle for lack of progress in Jordan.”
The Crown Prince went on to argue that young people needed encouragement to unleash their potential, without being told, “it will never work” or “go find a real job”.
This was something Hussein’s father, King Abdullah II of Jordan, had taught him.
“My father’s guidance has been important in what he says as much as what he does not say. He has never told me ‘this is not acceptable’ and he has never made me feel that my hands are tied with ‘what must be done’.
“He has not limited my prospects, nor forced anything on me. He has given me the space to experiment and choose. Whenever I am hesitant or unsure, he urges me to ‘try’ or ‘experiment’. Realising that the lessons I would learn from failure are far more valuable than success, and that choice is a responsibility.”
The Crown Prince ended his speech with this motivational message: “Believe in yourselves, believe in your dreams. Whenever you are hesitant or reluctant, remember these words: be bold; dare to try.”
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