Authorities urged to speed up approval of optional domestic helper insurance

AMMAN — The Ministry of Industry and Trade’s recent decision to cancel the exclusivity of domestic workers’ insurance to a company that won the tender floated by the Domestic Helpers Recruitment Agencies Association (DHRAA) seeks to encourage competition, an official said on Monday.

The move seeks to open the market to other insurance companies and boost competitiveness among service providers in offering high quality services at suitable prices, Yanal Barmawi, the ministry’s spokesperson, told The Jordan Times over the phone.

Insurance firms that already have the ministry’s permission to cover domestic workers’ compulsory insurance can still do so, Barmawi noted. 

“But companies seeking to provide medical insurance for helpers or insurance policies if the helpers run away or refuse to work need to get a licence from the ministry,” he said, noting that these policies are optional.

The ministry, Barmawi added, is currently studying applications by companies seeking to offer the optional insurance, and developing regulations governing insurance.

Meanwhile, DHRAA Acting President Tareq Nooti urged the ministry to process the applications soon, noting that the suspension of issuing optional insurance policies for domestic helpers has had negative effects on the recruitment of workers.

“Yesterday the embassy of Bangladesh in Amman notified the association of a decision to suspend sending domestic helpers to Jordan in rejection of the ministry’s decision,” he told The Jordan Times, expecting the embassies of the Philippines and Kenya to take similar action to protect their citizens.

Nooti said there are currently some 50,000 domestic helpers in Jordan of all nationalities, including around 30,000 from Bangladesh.

The association supports opening the insurance market to all companies, he added, but called on the ministry to approve applications for optional insurance permits “as soon as possible”.

Nooti noted that the Jordan French Insurance Company, which won the association’s tender has paid up to JD500,000 in compensation. A comprehensive insurance per domestic helper costs JD100-130.