King Abdullah of Jordan has told the BBC how he hopes to turn the country into the hi-tech capital of the Middle East.

The king has instituted a programme with a number of private sector companies to put computers into the country's schools. Software has also been designed to run alongside the school curriculum.

The king, who has termed the programme "big ideas for a little country," told BBC World Service's Assignment programme that he hoped it would provide a model for the entire region.

"We are embarking on a pretty adventurous set of reforms, political, social and economic," said King Abdullah.

"If we fail, then for all the traditionalists, all the old guard in the Middle East who do want to reform, will use the failure of Jordan as an excuse not to move forward.

"This is why it is so important for us to succeed in everything we do, on human rights, on political parties, on education, on health."  more ...