The textile sector in Morocco and Jordan consists on companies that have limited access to services like testing, training, research, studies, technology and financial funding instruments. Also, there are not any focal points in these two countries that fulfill the knowledge triangle, bringing together enterprises, universities and research centers, especially as far as the advanced textiles’ production is concerned.
“FOSTEX” project main aim is to bridge the gap in the University-enterprise collaboration in the area of specialized services for the textile sector by upgrading two textiles centers in Morocco and by establishing two advanced textiles’ centers in Jordan and training their staff by EU experts. All of them will be located within the HEIs in the consortium by bringing in the experience and expertise from EU partners in the area of services. The advanced textiles’ centers resulting from this project will enable access to business 
development services, such as quality testing, product certification, training, technology trends, production organization, B2B and funding opportunities for the textile industry from both Jordan and Morocco. At last, this will enable Jordanian and Moroccan textile industry to develop added value products and, therefore, increasing their competitiveness in the global market.
Besides, the implementation of the centers aims to promote entrepreneurship and innovation among students of the each HEI host at both countries by facilitating accessing entrepreneurial support services such as market information, testing and prototyping and tools for them to start up their ventures and become entrepreneurs. The goal of promoting entrepreneurship within HEIs is to foster the link between university and the textile industry in partners’ countries. In addition, entrepreneurship could also lead a facilitated integration of refugees within the developing textile sector. Jordan is a huge receiver of refugees with over 600k Syrian refugees according to UNHCR (the UN Refugee Agency) and EU papers.
Project Τitle:
“Fostering innovation in the Jordan and Moroccan textile industry – FOSTEX”
Project Duration: 5/1/2019 – 4/1/2022
Project URL: http://fostexproject.eu/
Project Framework & Funding:
KA2 – Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices – Capacity Building in the field of Higher Education ( Call for Proposals 2018 – EAC/A05/2017)
Funding: 67.011,00 €
Principal Investigator (UNIWA): Dr Georgios Priniotakis, Email: gprin@uniwa.gr], Tel: +30-2105381335
Consortium – Partners:
- University of West Attica, Greece, Department of Industrial and Product Design Engineering, Laboratory of Design and Development of Innovative Knitted Textiles and Garments –DIKNIGA)
- Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya Spain, (Coordinator)
- AEI TEXTILS (Associació Agrupació d’Empreses Innovadores Tèxtils), Spain
- CREATIVE THINKING DEVELOPMENT, Greece
- Centro italiano per l’apprendimento permanente, Italy
- MATERIAL CONNEXION ITALIA S.R.L. Italy
- INSTITUTUL NATIONAL DE CERCETARE-DEZVOLTARE PENTRU TEXTILE SI PIELARIE, Romania
- Jordan University of Science and Technology, Jordan
- Al Balqa Applied University, Jordan
- Ecole Supérieure des Industries du Textile et de l’Habillement, Morocco
- Amman chamber of industry, Jordan
- Université Hassan II de Casablanca, Morocco
- ASSOCIATION MAROCAINE DES INDUSTRIES DU TEXTILE ET DE L’HABILLEMENT, Morocco
