Economic woes top Jordanians’ concerns — opinion survey

AMMAN — Unemployment, poverty, price hikes, high costs of living and low salaries top the list of the major challenges facing Jordan, according to a public opinion poll.

Announced by the Jordan Centre for Strategic Studies (CSS) at the University of Jordan on Wednesday, the poll seeks to elicit people’s views on current issues in the Kingdom and analyse trends and attitudes in public opinion on the government’s ability to assume its responsibilities, in addition to taking the measure of public policies.

The poll revealed that 36 per cent of Jordanians have trust in Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Bisher Al Khasawneh’s government, a year and a half after its formation.

Price escalation, the high cost of living, the deteriorating economic situation, and the government’s “confusion” in decision making, are the reasons behind most citizens’ belief that things are “only going the wrong direction”, the poll observed.

During the release of the survey, CSS Director Zaid Eyadat said that despite the “current mood of pessimism”, 28 per cent of Jordanians are optimistic that the government will resolve the problems facing Jordan.

“The government should be worried,” Eyadat stressed, noting that “Jordanians’ distrust of the government has become part of their DNA, due to policy failures”.

The survey showed that 91 per cent of Jordanians trust the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army, the General Intelligence Department and the Public Security Directorate, while only 59 per cent have confidence in the judicial system.

Khasawneh was sworn in along with his Cabinet on October 12 2020, according to the survey which was implemented during the period between March 27 and April 2, 2022.

In the CSS’ previous survey conducted one year into Khasawneh’s Cabinet (October 26, 2021), the government still had the confidence of Jordanians, and the majority of people believed in the prime minister’s ability to shoulder his responsibilities.

Additionally, the CSS conducted a survey following almost 100 days of forming the Cabinet between January 24 and 31, 2021. After 200 days of Khasawneh’s Cabinet formation, another survey was implemented between May 16 and 21, 2021.

According to the recent survey, 40 per cent of opinion leaders and experts still trust the government, and 95 per cent of opinion leaders in Jordan follow the Cabinet’s work. Meanwhile, 54 per cent of Jordanians are interested in following the government’s operations.

The survey’s total sample size was 1,264 individuals aged above 18 years, of which 50 per cent were females and 50 per cent males, and who were randomly selected from 158 locations from across the Kingdom.

According to the poll, only 18 per cent of Jordanians believe that “things are going in the right direction”.

Further, the results showed that 42 per cent of Jordanians find that the government succeeded in improving the health system and increasing the number of individuals included in it.

However, the survey noted that the quality of public services declined, particularly education, health, roads and infrastructure.

It added that 63 per cent of Jordanians believe the current government has successfully supported the Palestinian cause, which tops Jordan’s diplomatic agenda.