AMMAN — Latest international migration data
released by the
United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA)
indicated that approximately 33.9 percent of Jordan’s population are
immigrants, the majority of whom are from
Iraq,
Syria, and
Egypt, among other
states. Information released by the World Food Program’s in December 2021, 7
percent of Jordan’s total population are Syrian refugees, all of whom have fled
Syria due to the dire political and economic situation.
اضافة اعلان
DESA’s recently released analysis reveals that there
were 3.5 million immigrants present in Jordan during 2020; a noticeable
increase from 2010’s figures, which stood at 2.8 million. In 2000, the number
of immigrants was 1.9 million, while in 2005, the number was 2.2 million,
indicating that the aggregate number of immigrants coming to the Kingdom since
the turn of the century has been steadily increasing.
Jordanian economist Mufleh Aqel agreed that a big
percentage of the population are immigrants, “roughly meaning that for every
two Jordanians, there is one foreigner in the Kingdom,” adding that this can
pose a challenge for Jordan, especially because of its limited resources,
particularly its water scarcity issues.
Aqel emphasized that it is crucial to distinguish
between those who immigrate for political reasons, and those who immigrate for
economic reasons. Syrian workers, as an
example have been working in the Jordanian food and restaurant sector at an
increasing rate, almost saturating the industry, Aqel said.
“Some economic immigrants can be beneficial to
Jordan, like those immigrants that have invested large sums of money in the
Jordanian economy.
Low-income immigrants however, can be economically
burdensome for Jordan and its limited resources,” Aqel added.
In reference to foreign workers with work permits in
Jordan, Aqel estimated that there are nearly 200,000 workers who are legally
authorized to work in Jordan through work permits, while there are in total
approximately 800,000 foreign workers. “One of the main reasons why some of
these workers end up not choosing to obtain work permits, is because the
process is rather expensive. These permits can cost anywhere between JD700 to
JD JD800, which is why some of them are deterred from this process.”
On the impact of the
Syria refugee crisis on Jordan,
economic expert Mazen Irshaid told
Jordan News, that the continued
influx of Syrian refugees into the Kingdom is bound to increase pressures on
the infrastructure, namely on the water sector, which has suffered scarcity
even before the Syria crisis.”
Irshaid added that the annual cost of supporting the
refugee populations in Jordan could reach JD1 billion, noting that “Jordan
often receives only a fraction of the financial assistance it requests from
donor countries, making matters even more difficult.”
He also noted that the increase in the number of immigrants
in Jordan has created a challenge for Jordanian nationals in the work market.
Jordan’s current unemployment rate is the highest in its history, reaching
approximately 24 percent. Two years into
the pandemic, the figure decreased by a measly 1 percent, from 25 percent. “A surge in immigration to Jordan could it
even more competitive and challenging for Jordanians,” said Irshaid.
Read more National news
.jpg)
.jpg)
