The Jordanian Labor Observatory called on the government to reconsider the economic and educational policies in force, which narrowed the economic choices for young men and women.

This came in a statement issued by the Labor Observatory of the Phenix Center for Economic and Informatics Studies, today, Saturday, on the occasion of the International Youth Day, which falls on the twelfth of August of each year.

In the statement, the observatory indicated that there are many challenges that young people still face despite the end of most of the effects of the Corona pandemic, which led to unemployment rates, especially among the youth group, reaching high levels compared to the historical unemployment rates in Jordan, and their rates in most countries of the world.

The statement indicated that the unemployment rate in the Kingdom during the first quarter of the current year 2022 amounted to (22.8) percent, while among young people in the age group 15-24 years and those who are not in school, it reached (47.7) percent (44.2% for males, compared to 63.9 percent for males). for females).

The statement explained that the continued application of contractionary fiscal policies and unfair tax policies have weakened the Jordanian economy’s capabilities to generate new job opportunities to absorb new entrants, due to the slowdown that the Jordanian economy has been experiencing for more than a decade.

Annually, about 120,000 job seekers enter the labor market, while the Jordanian economy, with its public and private sectors, generates no more than 40,000 new jobs annually.

The statement pointed to the expansion of academic university education three decades ago at the expense of technical and vocational intermediate education, in contrast to the needs of the labor market and best practices in various parts of the world. It created structural distortions in the labor market and contributed to the increase in unemployment rates.

The statement also noted that the decline in the quality of education, in terms of its reliance on memorization and memorization, and the move away from innovative educational curricula that develop the knowledge and analytical capabilities of students, contributed to the lack of the majority of male and female graduates with the knowledge and skills necessary for their involvement in the labor market.

The statement pointed out that the majority of workers in the private sector suffer from significant weaknesses in decent work conditions, especially young men and women.

He indicated that this constitutes shocking conditions for the majority of young men and women seeking new jobs in most Jordanian economic sectors, as the tangible decline in wage levels and their stability, despite successive rises in prices, constitute the most prominent reputation.

The statement stressed that these difficult challenges faced by young men and women in Jordan, came as a result of a number of economic options and policies that have been implemented in Jordan over the past decades, and that it is time to review them, as local and international opinion polls indicate that the majority of Jordanian youths want to emigrate.

The statement expected that the non-social economic policies under which work is carried out according to the Economic Priorities Program, such as the abolition of the Ministry of Labor and the weakening of social protections for young people within the framework of social security, will contribute to weakening the already weak working conditions of the majority of wage workers, especially young people, which means further restriction of work. The options are before them.

(compass)