Employment through Labour Intensive Infrastructure in Jordan (Phases 1 to 5)
This programme has been running since 2016 across northern Jordan with funding from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), through the German Development Bank (KfW). It provides short term employment for Jordanians and Syrians, improve infrastructure and public spaces, and give post-employment opportunities to workers.
Background
In July 2016, as part of its response to the Syrian refugee crisis in Jordan and after an internally funded pilot, the ILO began implementing its Employment Intensive Infrastructure Programme in Jordan, with funding from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) of the Federal Republic of Germany, through KfW Development Bank.The programme focus was on improving livelihoods by providing cash-for-work opportunities for thousands of vulnerable Jordanian citizens as well as Syrian refugees. Syrian and Jordanian women and men contribute to the improvement of local infrastructure with a focus on maintenance and cleaning of roads and highways, and municipal buildings and facilities as a response to the humanitarian crisis at the beginning. As of now the project is moving towards more developmental approach and focusing on longer term job opportunities, building assets, sustainability and green works.
Since the start of the programme in 2016 until the end of Phase 5, the following have been achieved:
• 1,394,729 worker days
• 22,552 employment contracts of 40 paid days or more
• Over $16m paid to workers as wages
• 28 Implementation Agreements with Municipalities, typically 6-12 months
• Cleaning and light maintenance of 2,348 km of roads and highways
• 562 workers receiving post-employment skills training certificates
• 207 engineers and others completing certified professional training courses
Programme phases
| Phase | Ministries | Governorates |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ministry of Public Works and Housing, Ministry of Local Administration, Ministry of Agriculture. | Irbid, Mafraq |
| 2 | Ministry of Public Works and Housing, Ministry of Local Administration, Ministry of Agriculture. | Irbid, Mafraq |
| 3 | Ministry of Local Administration | Irbid, Mafraq |
| 4 | Ministry of Public Works and Housing, Ministry of Local Administration | Irbid, Mafraq, Jerash, Ajloun, Zarqa, Amman |
| 5 | Ministry of Public Works and Housing, Ministry of Local Administration | Irbid, Mafraq, Jerash, Ajloun, Zarqa, Amman, Karak |
Ministries and other partners
During the first five phases, the programme has worked with the following Ministries and partners.• Ministry of Labour
• Ministry of Local Administration (previously Ministry of Municipal Affairs)
• Ministry of Public Works and Housing
• Ministry of Agriculture
• Ministry of Education
• Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation
• Jordan Engineers Association
• National Employment and Training
Main themes
The programme started during a critical period of the Syrian crisis by providing large numbers of refugees, and Jordanians in the host communities, with short term employment and much needed income. The works used labour based methods and activities such as waste collection and grass cutting were chosen which would require a minimum of tools, equipment and materials, thereby maximising the income to the communities, Such activities have a high labour intensity, but may be seen as unsustainable when waste reappears and grass grows.Since then the programme has added a range of elements with the intention of increasing the long term impact of the completed work.
Activities
The following are key elements of the programme to date.
• Improving tertiary roads through the construction of drains for existing roads, and rehabilitating and maintaining roads to improve the accessibility to local farms
• Maintaining a cleaner environment in selected communities, through municipality works (cleaning of roads, parks and schools, as well as planting trees in selected municipalities)
• Building the capacity of staff at selected municipalities to manage employment intensive projects through training workshops
• Building the capacity of the public and private sector to implement employment—intensive approaches, through training of civil servants and contractors on how to use employment-intensive approaches to infrastructure maintenance
• Improving awareness of municipality and Ministry of Labour officials on labour laws, work permits, and social security rules and regulations through workshops
• Updating and implementing the strategy to increase women participation, through awareness campaigns, training, and workshops on women participation in infrastructure works
• Supporting the issuance of work permits in the agricultural and construction sectors to Syrian workers at the end of their employment contract under EIIP (work permits for one year processed for Syrian workers who have participated in the programme)
• Supporting workers who complete the programme through on-the-job and theoretical training in selected skills (skills training for future work opportunity in various sectors)
• Selecting Municipalities for Phase 5 based on an assessment of their technical and administrative capacity and their proposed activities
• Working on Sector coordination with GIZ for establishing Programme Support Unit for Cash for Work and implementing Standard Operations Procedures for the Sectors SOPs.
• Gradual move form Humanitarian to Development and from Vulnerability to Employment to ensure sustainability