Care Matters: The Value of Women’s Unpaid Care Work in Jordan
Care work, defined by the International Labor Organization as “consisting of activities and relations involved in meeting the physical, psychological and emotional needs of adults and children, old and young, frail and able-bodied,” has historically and overwhelmingly been undertaken by women worldwide in their roles as wives, mothers, and daughters. Care work can either be paid—through education, health, social care, and domestic work sectors—or unpaid. Unpaid care work typically includes the direct care or supervision of persons (primarily children, persons with disabilities, the elderly, and persons with chronic illnesses), housework that facilitates the care of persons, and food shopping, among other activities. While these actions are not always viewed as “work,” the “third-person” criterion defines work as activities for which a third person could be compensated, and as such, these behaviors are considered as work. Globally, women spend more time on unpaid care work than men; on average, they spend 2 hours and 28 minutes more on unpaid work than men per 24-hour day. In the Arab States, researchers have estimated that women perform 4.7 times more unpaid care work than men, which is the highest women-to-men ratio in the world. Specifically in Jordan, it has been calculated that the ratio of women-to-men’s time spent on unpaid care work reaches 19:1 in Jordan, the highest within the Arab States. In economic terms, unpaid care work has been proven as a predictor in determining both whether women enter and stay in the labor force as well as the quality of jobs they accept. Moreover, research shows that there is a significant negative correlation between a country’s female employment rate and women’s average unpaid working time. In other words, women’s unpaid care work decreases as national rates of women’s employment increase and vice versa. This phenomenon is reflected in Jordan, where the female labor participation rate is 14.9 percent, and it has been estimated that 51.3 percent of Jordanian women aged 15 years or above consider domestic household work (which is considered unpaid care work) as their primary activity. COVID-19 has exacerbated the inequalities in unpaid care work worldwide. Despite descriptions of crashing productivity in the “real economy,” women have been busier than ever, as men who are staying home due to job losses and remote work requirements have not increased their contributions to housework. Moreover, during crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, women “may face increased pressure to substitute unpaid work for lost income, for example, taking care of an ill relative at home rather than taking them to a clinic.” Indeed, UN Women estimated that in Jordan, married women with children may have spent 18 to 24 additional hours per week on unpaid care work during the pandemic, while men have only spent 1-3 hours additional hours per week on the same activities. As assessed by UN Women in 2020, unpaid care work has constituted a particular burden for women in Jordan despite social protection mechanisms. However, there is a lack of accurate and reliable data on care work activities undertaken by women, particularly considering the impact of COVID-19. Measuring the amount of unpaid direct and indirect care work that women perform on a daily basis is one of the strategies that feminist economists have highlighted as integral to bringing awareness to governmental institutions about the critical economic contributions of women. To this end, this report aims to sensitize wider audiences on the impact of unpaid care work from the perspectives of women in Jordan; and explore a gender-responsive and bottom-up approach in deciding how care work can be reduced and redistributed in Jordan. While the commodification of care work is presented as a potential solution by international experts, a women’s rights approach to unpaid care work must investigate the drivers that initially placed women in the position of the primary unpaid caregivers and the solutions that can provide women with a choice. To this end, the transformation of social norms and legislative changes are among the two most pressing recommendations. Further research looking into the realities of women’s lives as unpaid caregivers provides the necessary foundation to enact the necessary policies toward that transformation. This report comes as part of the action research conducted by ARDD’s Al Nahda Center within the framework of the project “Strengthening the Capacities of Women-led CSOs in Evidence-Based Advocacy and Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Agenda” supported by UN Women with the generous funding of the governments of Canada, Finland, Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom. ARDD would like to thank JONAF civil society partners and individuals that supported the development of this study.
JONAF’s observations on bill () 2021 Jordan Associations’ Law (associations’ law amendment bill)
Seeking to contribute to the efforts to create a law that promotes the role of various local and international civil society organizations and associations, the Jordanian National NGOs Forum (JONAF), sent a letter to the minister of social development and the reviewing committee of the Associations Law 2008 stressing the importance of implementing several procedures to ensure the issuance of an ideal law that emphasizes the constitutionally and internationally protected space and freedom of civil society organizations as partners in development. The forum wishes to highlight its recommendations regarding the amendment of the Associations Law, which it views as an integral part of this memorandum.
Debt and Imprisonment in Jordan Legal Analysis Briefs Series Volume 1
Debt and Imprisonment in Jordan brief discusses the legal frameworks for debt in Jordan and looks at repayment of debt according to the Jordan execution law and the penal code. It also sheds light on the impact of the Covid-19 crisis on debt repayment and the implications of the debts of women and refugees. The brief provides insights on Defense Law 28 and offers an overview of the laws in force in the region. The Brief proposes recommendations for moving forward that contribute to focusing on finding solutions that guarantee protection for both debtors and creditors in order to strengthen the rule of law and the right to litigation and ensure the implementation of legal provisions while avoiding harming the debtor or creditor. Amending the Jordanian Implementation Law of 2007 and its amendments, the insolvency law, and expanding the credit information law, in addition to the creation of a stable fund to pay off the debts of the defaulting debtor that is managed by the Ministry of Justice or the Ministry of Social Development. This brief on debt and imprisonment in Jordan is the first of ARDD’s legal analysis series. ARDD acknowledges and thanks members of The Forum for the Development of Justice Sector in Jordan for their insights on Defense Order no. 28 in particular.
Women’s Informal Employment in Jordan: Challenges Facing Home-Based Businesses During COVID-19 Women’s Advocacy Issues Policy Brief Volume 3
Jordan has moved into the second year of the COVID-19 crisis. The lockdowns, the global economic slowdown, trade disruptions, and the suspension of international travel have “exacerbated existing structural weaknesses in the economy and unresolved social challenges and put pressure on the country’s fragile macroeconomic stance.” Assessments conducted during the first wave of the pandemic revealed that employment losses and income reductions due to restrictions had had significant effects on households in governorates of Jordan. COVID-19 and the policies put in place to curb the spread of the pandemic worsened the situation, especially for women, as they lost income, were confronted with increasing responsibilities at home due to the closure of schools and caring for those infected and faced further risk of physical or psychological violence due to heightened tensions within the household and/or increased food insecurity. Women working in the informal sector, such as unregistered home-based businesses (HBBs), encountered challenges that took the form of termination of work and loss of major clientele. CSOs, in particular women-led CSOs, witnessed negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic on women working informally, as well as some trending coping measures that many women adopted to stay afloat. This brief explores women’s participation in the informal labor market, with a focus on home-based businesses before and during the COVID-19 crisis. The brief offers policy recommendations guided by insights from women-led and women-focused civil society organizations (CSOs) on how to address the economic impact on informal women-led home-based businesses in Jordan. This brief comes as part of a series of policy briefs ARDD is producing within the framework of the project “Strengthening the Capacities of Women-led CSOs in Evidence-Based Advocacy and Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Agenda,” supported by UN Women with the generous funding of the Governments of Canada, Finland, Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom. ARDD acknowledges the support of the women-led civil society partners involved in the project implementation and thanks to the representatives of the organizations for their meaningful contribution.
Beware of delegation…displacement and assignment of properties to the the Custodian for Absentees’ Property A statement issued by civil society organizations in Lebanon, Palestine and the diaspora
Civil organizations in Lebanon, Palestine, and the diaspora have revealed evidence and data confirming the involvement of lawyers and institutions operating in Lebanon seeking to displace Palestinian refugees from Lebanon to Western countries and liquidate their rights in the face of the colonial state “Israel” by transferring property ownership to the so-called custodian of absentees’ property. They called on Palestinian and Arab political forces, civil institutions, and individuals to organize awareness campaigns about the dangers of providing a legal mandate that includes a representative formula that enables the delegated body, whether it is an individual lawyer, institution, or body, to tamper with the legal rights of individual and collective Palestinian refugees. Statement in Arabic
JIF and JONAF point to successes and challenges in responding to Syrian refugee crisis in the Kingdom prior to the Brussels 5th Conference
The Jordan INGO Forum (JIF) and the Jordanian NGOs Forum (JONAF) launched the 2021 Walk the Talk report on progress and challenges faced in implementing the commitments made by the Government of Jordan and the International Community under the Jordan Compact and at subsequent Brussels meetings in 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2020. As with previous years, this year’s Walk the Talk assesses education, livelihoods, protection, and health for Syrian refugees in Jordan prior to the Brussels 5 Conference on March 30, which will occur virtually. The report is based on assessments and surveys taken over the past year to track progress and barriers faced, as well as on civil society feedback from both international and national NGOs. It looks to highlight the challenges faced by Syrian refugees, as well as provide evidence-based recommendations as to how the International Community and the Government of Jordan can support these communities and address ongoing and emerging issues. This year the conference comes at a time following one year of the outbreak of the pandemic, as well as a decade of conflict and protracted displacement in Syria. The COVID-19 crisis has posed immense health challenges to all communities in the Kingdom and strained health infrastructure and capacities. Jordan has been forced to grapple not only with mitigating the spread of the virus, but also to address the secondary impacts of the response, which encompass exacerbated protection risks, such as with regards to SGBV and child protection; socioeconomic concerns related to the loss of livelihoods; school closures and barriers to online learning; and increased psychological stress. Additionally, ten years of displacement of Syrian refugees has resulted in increased vulnerabilities with highly limited pathways to durable solutions. Thus, JIF and JONAF continue to advocate not only for the inclusion of refugees in national response plans and social protection schemes to ensure no one is left behind, particularly in the COVID-19 response, but also to maintain an emphasis on longer-term approaches for Syrian refugees and integrating the humanitarian-development nexus and resilience programming into policies and practice. The need for support is greater now than before, both to assist the Government and to strengthen and include civil society in the overall response. Multi-stakeholder partnerships across and between sectors are critical to incorporate local actors, strengthen capacities, and place refugee and host community voices at the center of all interventions. Furthermore, after a decade of displacement, assistance through flexible funding is necessary to shift to longer-term responses and promote the resilience of communities. All stakeholders ranging from government actors, INGOs and NNGOs, community-based organizations, donors, and the private sector have a responsibility to assist the Kingdom not only in addressing the challenges Syrian refugees face through programming and the COVID-19 response but also in continuing to promote principled humanitarian policies and assistance.
Women’s Financial Vulnerability: Challenges Women Face with Debt and Loans
In August 2020, ARDD collected data from 506 women in Jordan to gauge their financial situation, particularly the impact COVID-19 has had on their financial debt. The analysis of the data, combined with information and insight from the 19 CBOs participating in this project, resulted in very informative findings regarding women’s debt. Overall, COVID-19 has exposed the fragile financial situation of women. When looking at different aspects of women’s lives (their legal status, educational level, and civil/marital status), data shows that these elements are all critical to understanding the type of debt and the vulnerability of their situations. Along with it, the prevalence of non-institutional actors providing financial assistance to Syrian refugee women raises concern about the potential risk of abuse. The brief also suggests several recommendations to the Jordanian government and donors, such as providing support to programs that improve women’s skills and raise their legal and financial awareness, strengthening cash assistance programs, and drafting protocols to report situations of abuse regarding borrowing from non-institutional sources, in addition to enhancing legal aid services for women and supporting them. The Arab Renaissance for Democracy Development (ARDD) is producing a series of policy briefs within the framework of the project “Strengthening the Capacities of Women-led CSOs in Evidence-Based Advocacy and Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Agenda” supported by UN Women with the generous funding of the governments of Canada, Finland, Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom. ARDD acknowledges the support of the women-led civil society partners involved in the project implementation and thanks to the representatives of the organizations for their meaningful contribution.
JONAF raises reservations vis-à-vis amendment to the Companies Law No. 35 of 2010
Issuing a statement, the Jordan National NGOs Forum (JONAF) expressed reservations about an article in the amendments of Companies Law No. 35 of 2010. At a time when the Jordanian government seeks to secure for the civil society organizations an environment that enables them to practice their work within the local and international legal framework, the current House of Representatives approved an article that concerns foreign funding for non-profit companies. The article reads as follows: “If 30 days have passed from the date of submitting the application and no decision has been issued, the funding is considered rejected.” JONAF stressed in its statement that non-profit companies are an integral part of civil society organizations, and the amendment limits the freedoms stipulated in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which harms these companies’ interest and is, therefore, a violation of the law. JONAF firmly believes in the need to strengthen the rule of law and requests a reversal of the amendment based on the reasons and legal justification presented in its statement, to consider the failure of the minister to respond to the funding application as an approval or, otherwise, that the case is still open, as already stipulated in the Associations Law. JONAF also urges the government to strengthen the trust between it and the civil society organizations by presenting concrete and effective strategies to support and improve their efficiency, and that only can be achieved through enacting legislation that gives these organizations an enabling space in which to carry out their work, legally and under meaningful, constructive and transparent oversight. Full statement available in Arabic
Localizing Gender Agendas Position Paper
Local organizations’ agency must be strengthened if local communities’ needs are to be met The Arab Renaissance for Democracy and Development (ARDD) has launched a position paper, titled “Localizing the Gender Agendas”, calling on the local organizations to strive to reach decision-making positions at all levels and to set their priorities in their agendas in line with the concerns and needs of the communities they represent and help, and not be content with back seats and the role of the implementers only. The position paper’s launch comes in line with this year’s theme for International Women’s Day, “Women in leadership: Achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world”. ARDD’s position paper sheds light on the work concerned with gender programming and advancing women’s rights in the country context. It explores the understanding of and approaches to gender programming and methods used to promote women’s rights. It documents experiences of women-led organizations working on women’s rights in selected countries in Africa, Asia and the MENA region, and the lessons learned from the undertaking of making issues appropriate to a country and its culture. The paper studies the examples of countries from regions with similar cultural contexts and that face similar issues. It also reviews donor policies and the approaches of aid organizations that support the women’s rights movement and implement feminist agendas. Most of the research on women-led organizations that have been published recently has been commissioned by international actors. ARDD’s paper is an attempt to add a voice from a local actor’s perspective. The paper criticizes the impact of unbalanced power relations between international agencies with relatively high levels of resources and authority on the world stage, and local organizations, which often leads to a feeling of having entered an “unequal partnership”, and the mission drift of the local organization during crisis and, over time, to the local organizations losing their identity, as well as of the current funding system, which is unreliable at a time funding is most needed, subject to growing transaction costs and suffering due to the power dynamics between patrons and their clients. One big challenge faced by the local NGOs is access to sustainable funding, especially in view of the high level of competition among these local organizations. Another challenge is the fact that INGOs provide project-based funding, while they should invest in capacity building as well. The report called on donors and governments to place the needs and priorities of local actors as a central objective, and for funders to act as active agents that collaborate to support local priorities, not make decisions on their behalf. It also called on donors and international organizations to show greater awareness of the way they practice, of their privileges and of some prejudices they might have, to show confidence in the ability of local actors to understand the needs of their communities and to adopt programs that work to meet these needs and achieve the desired results. It stressed that finding the right pace and strategies in the implementation of local agendas is a delicate balancing act that national and local actors are better equipped to execute. Gender equality agenda can be supported from outside but needs to be driven and led from within, asserts the paper. While the paper shows the positive impact of international conventions on women’s equality, it also believes that the manner in which they were conceived, the entities that control these agendas and the manner in which they are being implemented should be further discussed. At the same time, the paper asked that local and international organizations exhibit greater transparency and accountability and called on women-led organizations from the South to come together, show solidarity and be willing to act together while building a solid support base in their countries. These organizations, the paper believes, must strive to be well informed and willing to be critical of their partners. Solidarity amongst them is crucial if they wish to be able to stand up to their international partners and make them more accountable for the manner in which they deliver on their commitments. While International Women’s Day calls for women to assume more leadership roles and decision-making positions in local and national contexts, the paper stresses the need for better representation of women from various intellectual and cultural backgrounds, the need to listen to them with a holistic view and to take in the critical local voices that strive to tackle local issues, and to refrain from dictating agendas that do not have full consensus in their communities. Gender justice is one of the foundations of the renaissance. However, a true renaissance can only be achieved if it meets the consensus of local communities and makes their aspirations come true while refusing to follow foreign models in a local context.
How Women-led Civil Society Organizations Empowered Vulnerable Women During Covid-19 Pandemic: the Indebtedness of Women in Jordan
Indebtedness is one of the main factors that impact women’s economic empowerment in Jordan. Women in Jordan have one of the lowest labor participation rates in the world, double-digit unemployment rates reaching over 30%, and since they hold lower financial inclusion rates than men, they are more likely to be indebted. The COVID-19 crisis has only exacerbated this situation. The brief aims to evidence the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on women and to include the women’s specific needs. Women-led civil society organizations (CSOs) provided aid to women who have the opportunity to borrow money for small businesses and have specific regulations for loan types, grace periods, and loan repayment. Moreover, some CSOs provide legal counseling and aid, free of charge, to “Gharimat” through their organizations. However, women still face challenges related to loan repayment, which the policy brief addresses with a set of recommendations. The Arab Renaissance for Democracy Development (ARDD) is producing a series of policy briefs within the framework of the project “Strengthening the Capacities of Women-led CSOs in Evidence Based Advocacy and Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Agenda” supported by UN Women with the generous funding of the governments of Canada, Finland, Norway, Spain, and the United Kingdom. ARDD acknowledges the support of the women-led civil society partners involved in the project implementation and thanks the representatives of the organizations for their meaningful contribution.