Lack of opportunity drives youth to emigrate — experts

Dana Al-Zyadat, Jordan news

last updated: Oct 16,2022

Amman - Ameer — A general view of the Jordanian capital Amman. (Photo: Ameer Khalifeh/Jordan News)

AMMAN — Young Jordanians are emigrating in search of better job opportunities to improve their status and the living condition of their families, analysts contended.اضافة اعلان

The assessment came in the wake of purportedly large numbers of Jordanians flocking to the US embassy in Amman after it started accepting immigration applications.

According to a study by the Arab Barometer, 48 percent of Jordanians expressed a real desire to emmigrate abroad.

Psychosocial expert Ismat Hoso told Jordan News that the lack of opportunities is pushing young Jordanians to emigrate “for better living conditions”.

“Youth suffer from unemployment under difficult economic conditions, and this has led to a feeling of disappointment,” she explained.

She pointed out that there is no consistency between education and the labor market in Jordan, “which contributes to high unemployment rates, and pushes young people to work jobs not in their specialization”.

Sociologist Hussain Al-Khuzaie said that the economic, social and political conditions that Jordanians live in “are harsh and it has become difficult for the citizen to adapt to them”.

He told Jordan News that “the problem exacerbated when unemployment among holders of a bachelor’s degree reached 40 percent, 78 percent of whom are women”.

He stressed that the economic difficulties are represented by low wages, “given that 25 percent of the workers earn less than JD300 (per mounth). These people have no future and no job, or practical stability”.

He pointed out that Jordan “is ranked sixth among Arab countries, in terms of unemployment, and 17th globally”.

He estimated that bank loans extended away to Jordanians stand at JD12 billion, adding that 66 percent of crimes are “money-related, and that includes theft and fraud”.

Khuzaie said what is being offered by the government as “solutions” is just a “shot in the arm” that is “not feasible, nor realistic”.

Hussein Al-Mahadin, professor of Sociology and Criminology at Mutah University, disagreed with these. He told Jordan News that “it cannot be generalized that the main reason behind the youth’s desire for immigration is the lack of incentives”.

He explained that there are personal differences, “whereas each person has his/her own and specific reasons in terms of immigrating, or staying in the country”.

He said that “we cannot say that Jordan is a non-stimulating environment for young people”. He added: “We need to make a real change especially that we have the required tools to overcome the most prominent challenges.”

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