Publication:
Jordan Economic Monitor, Fall 2023 - Building Success, Breaking Barriers: Unlocking the Economic Power of Women in Jordan

Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Files in English
English PDF (1.81 MB)
418 downloads
English Text (268.81 KB)
43 downloads
English Summary (46.3 MB)
23 downloads
Other Files
Arabic PDF (2.48 MB)
134 downloads
Date
2023-12-21
ISSN
Published
2023-12-21
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
Jordan’s real growth registered 2.4 percent in 2022 and has accelerated to 2.7 percent in H1-2023, compared to a pre-COVID-19 (2012-2019) average of 2.4 percent. Growth was supported by the services sector, agriculture sector, in addition to a robust contribution from agriculture. Inflation decelerated significantly in 2023, supported by favorable base effect, monetary policy tightening and lower global commodity prices. External imbalances have narrowed, supported by a string recovery in tourism activity and travel receipts. Central government fiscal balance was supported by economic growth and revenue-enhancing reforms, whereas total expenditure grew at a slower pace. Despite these positive developments, entrenched structural constraints weigh on labor market outcomes, as labor force participation continues its gradual decline driven by a fall in both male and female participation. Jordanian female labor participation remains among the lowest in the world. Debt-to-GDP ratios continues to rise from already elevated levels with persisting pressures from the electricity and water sectors. The global and regional environments remain challenging. In particular, the conflict in the Middle East has the potential for material economic spillovers on the Jordanian economy, including through its impact on tourism activity. The “In Focus” section highlights the role of women and their increased economic participation as central to Jordan’s development agenda. The piece takes a life cycle approach and follows the journey of girls and women from birth through education and into the labor market. It sheds light on two of the main barriers to women’s increased participation in the economy: childcare and public transportation. A comprehensive institutional renovation, together with enabling policies and a clear signal regarding the role of women, are all crucial in removing barriers and facilitate the integration of women into the labor force.
Link to Data Set
Citation
World Bank. 2023. Jordan Economic Monitor, Fall 2023 - Building Success, Breaking Barriers: Unlocking the Economic Power of Women in Jordan. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/40786 License: CC BY-NC 3.0 IGO.
Associated URLs
Associated content
Report Series
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue

Related items

Showing items related by metadata.

  • Publication
    Jordan Economic Monitor, Fall 2020
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2020-10) World Bank
    The global economy continues to reel from the COVID-19 (coronavirus) shock. The initial economic impact of COVID-19 on global output is projected to be far more devastating than the disruptions observed during the peak downturn of the global financial crisis of 2007–09. Across theworld, lockdowns and mobility restrictions meant to control the spread of virus caused a significant slump in consumer spending and production during the first half of 2020. This in turn created substantial challenges for labor markets worldwide and has led to widespread layoffs. In addition to the economic cost, however, the pandemic has also inflicted an irreversible cost to economies in the form of human loss. So far, estimates indicate that over one million humans have lost their lives worldwide, while millions more still battle the pandemic. Beside its impact on human life, the COVID-19 pandemic has wide ranging socio-economic impacts, endangering lives, livelihoods, employment, and earnings as well as impeding service delivery. According to World Bank estimates, the pandemic could also lead to permanent loss in learning resulting in trillions of dollars in lost earnings. Despite the challenging conditions, recent global economic information indicates some recovery, albeit uneven and possibly temporary,across countries after gradual easing of lockdowns. This recovery, which is largely supported by unprecedented interventions by the central banks and governments, however, remains uneven and still far from the pre-pandemic levels. In particular, most of the major economies are again observing a surge in new infections and some of them have already re-instituted targeted lockdowns. This leaves the global economic outlook more uncertain over the coming period. The Jordanian economy is also hit hard by the pandemic amidst already high unemploymentand debt levels. Prior to the COVID-19 shock, for the past four years the economy was growing at a low trajectory of around 2.0 percent. This rate of growth was insufficient to absorb the country’s young and growing labor force. These challenges have now been exacerbated by COVID-19 related economic disruptions. Jordan’s unemployment rate spiked to 23.0 percent in Q2-2020, 3.7 percent higher than Q1-2020, with youth, particularly female youth, disproportionally affected by the crisis. Moreover, according to a World Bank study on the short-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on businesses, Jordan is among the countries with the largest expected drop in sales, at 60 percent, while 54 percent of businesses report they have fallen or expect to fall in arrears.
  • Publication
    Jordan Economic Monitor, Fall 2021
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2021-10) World Bank
    Jordan’s economy is showing a healthy recovery following a moderate contraction of 1.6 percent in 2020. Notwithstanding the restrictive pandemic measures, the economy managed to grow by 1.8 percent in the first half of 2021. Meanwhile, accommodative monetary policy by the Central Bank of Jordan (CBJ) as well as fiscal policy, continued to play an active role in supporting the economy during the pandemic, while inflation has remained low. Yet, the pandemic has left deep scars on Jordan’s labor market, exacerbating unemployment challenges, particularly for females, and the youth, which remained at an elevated level. Moreover, Jordan’s external accounts has been under pressure, reflecting the combined impact of unfavorable terms of trade, improved domestic demand and continued slack in travel receipts. Despite these pressures, the Central Bank of Jordan has been able to build up its gross foreign reserves during the first nine months of 2021, on the back of timely donor support. Accelerating global recovery, improved vaccine rollouts and near full reopening of the domestic economy are considered major drivers for this year’s growth. The World Bank projects Jordan to grow by 2.2 percent in 2021. Nevertheless, downside risks remain significant, including uneven global recovery, another potential COVID-19 wave, as well as slow recovery of international tourism. Going forward, it is critical for Jordan to enhance domestic vaccination level, balance high quality fiscal adjustment with reforms to attract private investment and improve productivity to enable a resilient recovery that can help boost inclusive and sustained growth and job creation.
  • Publication
    Jordan Economic Monitor, Fall 2015
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-10-01) World Bank
    The Jordan economic monitor provides an update on key economic developments and policies over the past six months. It also presents findings from recent World Bank work on Jordan. It places them in a longer-term and global context, and assesses the implications of these developments and other changes in policy for the outlook for the country. Its coverage ranges from the macro-economy to financial markets to indicators of human welfare and development. It is intended for a wide audience, including policy makers, business leaders, financial market participants, and the community of analysts and professionals engaged in Jordan.
  • Publication
    Jordan Economic Monitor, Fall 2022 - Public Investment
    (Washington, DC, 2023) World Bank
    Despite a challenging global environment, Jordan’s growth exceeded expectations during the first half of 2022. Propelled by a strong rebound in international tourism, the full reopening of the economy, and improving exports, real GDP accelerated to 2.7 percent. However, the rebound in economic activity was only modestly reflected on labor market indicators with unemployment rates declining only gradually. Inflation has reached its highest level since 2018 but remains contained compared to regional peers, due to temporary fuel subsidies and a number of other price control measures introduced in 2022. Yet, the untargeted subsidy support came at a fiscal cost as fiscal consolidation adjustments have slowed down despite good tax performance. On the external front, elevated global commodity prices led to a significant rise in Jordan’s import bill, outpacing the effect of the increased merchandise exports and tourism. Moreover, capital and financial inflows did not keep up with the widening current account deficit, resulting in a widening of the balance of payment deficit and a drawdown in foreign exchange reserves. Nonetheless, due to its substantial reserve buffers, the Central Bank’s gross foreign reserves remained at an adequate level, while Jordan continues to retain investors’ confidence and access to foreign financial markets. Jordan’s economic recovery in 2022 is expected to be driven by a full rebound of the services sector, helped by the full reopening of the economy and a strong rebound in tourism. However, highly volatile global fuel and food prices are impacting both domestic consumption and the trade balance. Risks surrounding Jordan’s outlook include a looming global economic downturn, prolongation of the global food and energy crisis, and the impact of higher borrowing costs and widening losses from state-owned water and electricity sectors on debt dynamics. The Special Focus highlights the role of public investment as a driver of growth, with a particular focus on its recent trends, as well as its efficiency and effectiveness. This is particularly relevant given Jordan’s constrained fiscal envelope. Public investment spending has been suffering from a steady decline during the past two decades to meet the fiscal consolidation targets, consistent under-execution, large dependency on external aid and lack of budget for operation and maintenance cost. Its efficiency can be maximized by having in place financially realistic long-term strategic planning, transparent project selection and an adoption of a medium-term perspective. Purposefully integrating climate concerns in public investments would also advance the country’s achievement of its climate targets.
  • Publication
    Lebanon Economic Monitor, Fall 2015
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2015-11) World Bank
    The Lebanon Economic Monitor provides an update on key economic developments and policies over the past six months. It also presents findings from recent World Bank work on Lebanon. It places them in a longer-term and global context, and assesses the implications of these developments and other changes in policy on the outlook for Lebanon. Its coverage ranges from the macro-economy to financial markets to indicators of human welfare and development. It is intended for a wide audience, including policy makers, business leaders, financial market participants, and the community of analysts and professionals engaged in Lebanon.

Users also downloaded

Showing related downloaded files

  • Publication
    Ten Steps to a Results-Based Monitoring and Evaluation System : A Handbook for Development Practitioners
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2004) Zall Kusek, Jody; Rist, Ray C.
    An effective state is essential to achieving socio-economic and sustainable development. With the advent of globalization, there are growing pressures on governments and organizations around the world to be more responsive to the demands of internal and external stakeholders for good governance, accountability and transparency, greater development effectiveness, and delivery of tangible results. Governments, parliaments, citizens, the private sector, Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs), civil society, international organizations, and donors are among the stakeholders interested in better performance. As demands for greater accountability and real results have increased, there is an attendant need for enhanced results-based monitoring and evaluation of policies, programs, and projects. This handbook provides a comprehensive ten-step model that will help guide development practitioners through the process of designing and building a results-based monitoring and evaluation system. These steps begin with a 'readiness assessment' and take the practitioner through the design, management, and importantly, the sustainability of such systems. The handbook describes each step in detail, the tasks needed to complete each one, and the tools available to help along the way.
  • Publication
    The Power of Survey Design : A User's Guide for Managing Surveys, Interpreting Results, and Influencing Respondents
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2006) Iarossi, Giuseppe
    The vast majority of data used for economic research, analysis, and policy design comes from surveys-surveys of households, firms, schools, hospitals, and market participants, and, the accuracy of the estimate will depend on how well the survey is done. This innovative book is both a 'how-to' go about carrying out high-quality surveys, especially in the challenging environment of developing countries, and a 'user's guide' for anyone who uses statistical data. Reading this book will provide data users with a wealth of insight into what kinds of problems, or biases to look for in different data sources, based on the underlying survey approaches that were used to generate the data. In that sense the book is an invaluable 'skeptics guide to data'. Yet, the broad storyline of the book is something that should be absorbed by statistical data users. The book will teach and show how difficult it often is to obtain reliable estimates of important social and economic facts, and, therefore encourages you to approach all estimates with sensible caution.
  • Publication
    World Development Report 2019
    (Washington, DC: World Bank, 2019) World Bank
    Work is constantly reshaped by technological progress. New ways of production are adopted, markets expand, and societies evolve. But some changes provoke more attention than others, in part due to the vast uncertainty involved in making predictions about the future. The 2019 World Development Report will study how the nature of work is changing as a result of advances in technology today. Technological progress disrupts existing systems. A new social contract is needed to smooth the transition and guard against rising inequality. Significant investments in human capital throughout a person’s lifecycle are vital to this effort. If workers are to stay competitive against machines they need to train or retool existing skills. A social protection system that includes a minimum basic level of protection for workers and citizens can complement new forms of employment. Improved private sector policies to encourage startup activity and competition can help countries compete in the digital age. Governments also need to ensure that firms pay their fair share of taxes, in part to fund this new social contract. The 2019 World Development Report presents an analysis of these issues based upon the available evidence.
  • Publication
    Zimbabwe
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2019-03-01) World Bank
    This report presents an assessment of Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector disaster risk and management capacity. The findings indicate that Zimbabwe is highly exposed to agricultural risks and has limited capacity to manage risk at various levels. The report shows that disaster-related shocks along Zimbabwe’s agricultural supply chains directly translate to volatility in agricultural GDP. Such shocks have a substantial impact on economic growth, food security, and fiscal balance. When catastrophic disasters occur, the economy absorbs the shocks, without benefiting from any instruments that transfer the risk to markets and coping ability. The increasing prevalence of ‘shock recovery-shock’ cycles impairs Zimbabwe’s ability to plan and pursue a sustainable development path. The findings presented here confirm that it is highly pertinent for Zimbabwe to strengthen the capacity to manage risk at various levels, from the smallholder farmer, to other participants along the supply chain, to consumers (who require a reliable, safe food supply), and ultimately to the government to manage natural disasters. The assessment provides the following evidence on sources of risks and plausible risk management solutions. It is our hope that the report contributes to action by the Government of Zimbabwe to adopt a proactive and integrated risk management strategy appropriate to the current structure of the agricultural sector.
  • Publication
    Supporting Youth at Risk
    (World Bank, Washington, DC, 2008) Cohan, Lorena M.; Cunningham, Wendy; Naudeau, Sophie; McGinnis, Linda
    The World Bank has produced this policy Toolkit in response to a growing demand from our government clients and partners for advice on how to create and implement effective policies for at-risk youth. The author has highlighted 22 policies (six core policies, nine promising policies, and seven general policies) that have been effective in addressing the following five key risk areas for young people around the world: (i) youth unemployment, underemployment, and lack of formal sector employment; (ii) early school leaving; (iii) risky sexual behavior leading to early childbearing and HIV/AIDS; (iv) crime and violence; and (v) substance abuse. The objective of this Toolkit is to serve as a practical guide for policy makers in middle-income countries as well as professionals working within the area of youth development on how to develop and implement an effective policy portfolio to foster healthy and positive youth development.