Etudes par pays volume 2, PDF, 346 p., 1,4 Mo - Femise

11873_2002 Study D2: Poverty, Informal Sector, Health and Labour
by 6.6 percent compared with zero percent in 1986 and 1987. As the
measures taken by the government to improve the foreign exchange position
and the budget deficit were not sufficient without debt rescheduling and
external resources, the costs of these measures would prove to be too high.
Accordingly, the government reached an agreement with IMF and the WB
for an economic adjustment program for the 1989-1993 period in order to
revitalize economic activity and overcome the economic crisis. This
program was amended in the 1992-1998 period, because of the Gulf Crisis
in 1990. These measures included rationing public expenditure, increasing
the tax base to include more items and increasing tax rates for certain items.
Due to a weak industrial base, the performance of the Jordanian economy on
average during the program period was below the targeted levels. Therefore,
the government adopted a privatization program in order to enhance the
efficiency of the economy by greater role of the private sector. This program
was extended on a yearly basis until this year 2003. The government stated
that next year a national reform program will replace the previous
arrangements with the IMF and WB.
Poverty in Jordan
Before mid-1980s, poverty in Jordan was not seen as a problem, where the
interest was to emphasize income distribution. Due to the economic and
social achievements during the 1970s and early 1980s, Gini (?) co-efficient
decreased from about 38 percent in 1973 to about 32 percent in 1982
(Haddad, 1990). However, since the mid-1980s poverty became one of the
challenges facing the Jordanian economy, due to certain policies and
procedures undertaken to tackle the economic deterioration. These policies,
which were a helpful ones from an economic perspective, were harmful
ones for low-income and vulnerable groups in society.
Combating Poverty
Within the national policy framework to alleviate poverty, nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs) and international agencies were
encouraged to participate to support governmental programs. The main
concern of the NGOs is to help certain groups to improve their quality of
life, by enhancing voluntary work and women’s participation, especially in
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