On March 27, 2024, HKS Student Policy Review Senior Editor Ala’a Kolkaila spoke with Omar Razzaz. The coversation focused on a range of topics affecting Jordan and the region.
Omar Razzaz was the Prime Minister of Jordan from 2018 to 2020. Born in Al-Salt, Razzaz began his schooling in Amman, later continuing his studies abroad. He was director of several national and international institutions. He was Minister of Education in Hani Al-Mulki’s government since 2017, before his designation as Prime Minister. Razzaz was enrolled at AUB’s faculty of engineering from 1979 to 1981 and holds a master’s degree in City Planning from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Razzaz holds a PhD from Harvard University in Planning, with a minor in Economics. He completed his post-doctorate at Harvard Law School.
Razzaz was director of the World Bank in Lebanon between 2002 and 2006. He was director of Jordan’s Social Security Corporation between 2006 and 2010. He also served as director of the Jordan Strategy Forum and Jordan’s Ahli Bank. In 2017, he joined Hani Mulki’s government as Minister of Education in Jordan.