Unemployment in Jordan rises sharply amidst Syrian refugees influx

Unemployment in Jordan rose from 14.5 percent in 2011 to 22.1 percent at present with the influx of Syrian refugees, according to an international report released Sunday.

The report, conducted by the International Labor Organization, showed the labor participation rate among Jordanians was 67 percent before the start of the Syrian crisis, but it currently dropped to 42 percent among Jordanian youths.

The report showed of the 620,000 Syrian refugees registered in Jordan, only 20 percent are living in refugee camps, while the rest are in host communities.

It said about 51 percent of Syrian men living outside refugee camps participate in the Jordanian labor market.

Official figures showed there are more than 1.4 million Syrians in the Arab kingdom and less than half of them are registered with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

According to the report, Amman, Irbid and Mafraq governorates alone are hosting more than 76 percent of all the Syrian refugees in Jordan.