Youth survey planned in preparation for national strategy

AMMAN — After 10 years of having no strategy for the youth sector in Jordan, the government and other partners have started preparations to draft one for the next five years, according to the UN.

Before drafting the strategy, a two-month national survey — funded by UNICEF and
UNFPA Jordan — will be conducted by the Higher Council for Youth.

According to UNICEF, the main donor, the survey is the second of its kind in 14 years and will generate “critical information” on the situation of adolescents and young people in the country, and feed into the development of the projected national youth strategy.

“Policies and strategies for children and youth are effective only if [they are] based on evidence,” said UNICEF Representative to Jordan Robert Jenkins.

In a statement sent to The Jordan Times, the UN official explained that the survey will identify critical inequities, and inform policies and programmes.

The survey will cover 12,000 households spread across all 12 governorates, and reach 24,000 adolescents and youths between the ages of 10 and 24, in addition to their parents and guardians, according to UNICEF communications specialist Samir Badran.

Badran told The Jordan Times that the survey is expected to be finalised in May with its results released then or included in the national strategy, which is expected to be launched by the end of this year.

Data collection will be conducted by the University of Jordan’s Centre for Strategic Studies, with technical support from the King Hussein Foundation Information and Research Centre and the Department of Statistics, according to UNICEF.