This Blog is written by Aalaa Halaka
The JLMPS 2016 is the second wave of the Labor Market Panel Survey conducted in Jordan in collaboration with the Jordanian Department of Statistics (DoS). This is the latest addition of Labor Market Surveys that are carried out in several countries of the region in collaboration with their respective National Statistical Offices, and under the direction of our own Dr. Ragui Assaad.
We had a chance to interview to Dr. Qasem Alzoubi -director of the Jordanian Department of Statistics, who talked to us about the collaboration between DoS and ERF on both rounds of the JLMPS. Dr. Alzoubi advocates the role that the JLMPS has played in promoting high quality economic research based on representative micro-datasets, which provides essential new data for researchers and economists working on Jordan. He adds that the implementation of the survey also builds the capacity of DoS in state-of-the-art data collection methodologies and techniques that are beneficial for the department in its own practices.
Dr. Alzoubi affirmed that as the JLMPS contributes to a better understanding of the Jordanian labor markets, it also lays solid foundation for affecting the design of informed policies. The timing of the 2016 round comes at a particular advantage after the Syrian refugee crisis, where adding a representative refresher sample (extracted from the recently conducted census) has proved to be of immense interest academically, and even significantly relevant to policy and the current policy debate in in Jordan.
The conference also engaged a number of Jordanian policymakers including government officials, such as the Minister of Planning, the Minister of Education, and a representative of the Ministry of Labour. The involvement of policymakers in the academic dialogue does suggest that the research is making an impact and also creating inroads to engaging policymakers and other stakeholders in the Jordanian society.
The Policy Conference on Employment, Education and Housing in Jordan: The Impacts Of The Syrian Refugee Influx is held in Amman, Jordan, on 13 May 2018. This event aims to examine the impact of the Syrian refugee influx on various aspects of life for Jordanians, including their labor market outcomes, their access to education services and housing, and their demographic behavior in terms of marriage and fertility. Visit the conference website to find out more about the events and access policy briefs, working papers, videos and blogs.
