Supporting youth in Jordan to find employment opportunities despite COVID-19

The global COVID‑19 pandemic and its socio-economic impacts have caused chaos in the global economy since the beginning of 2020, adding pressure to the already stressed economy of Jordan.

The COVID‑19 crisis - and related restrictions imposed by the government to contain the spread of the virus - has greatly impacted Jordan’s economy. Many local businesses are facing the risk of permanent closure or downsizing. This has tremendously affected the business owners as well as their workers and employees. The pandemic has also added pressure on young people seeking increasingly scarce employment opportunities, recognizing that Jordan already had some of the world’s lowest employment rates prior to the COVID‑19 pandemic.

As a response to the pandemic, Mercy Corps conducted a market-need assessment to evaluate the impact of the virus on Jordan’s economy. As a result, Mercy Corps Jordan under the Leadership and Community Development program funded by FCDO (UK Aid) launched three activities to support Jordan’s economy and promote economic recovery.

The three activities are the Ma’sal campaign, which aims to promote local products and local businesses, Daman 2020 which aims to support 25 small businesses through subgrants, and the Shagher 2020 program which will provide 258 apprenticeships to young people across five governorates.

The Shagher campaign aims to link 258 skilled job seekers aged between 18-30 years old with local and private companies in five cities in Jordan (Amman, Zarqa, Irbid, Karak, Aqaba). Through this apprenticeship program, Mercy Corps will be paying the first three monthly salaries of the apprentices including their social security.

The campaign partners with the employers to work with the apprentices to improve their relevant skills and to enhance their knowledge during the three month period, with the aim of cultivating permanent job opportunities for apprentices in the related sector.

This campaign is part of the Leadership and Community Development program funded by FCDO (UKaid) and implemented by Mercy Corps Jordan.

Funded by FCDO