ILO brings stakeholders together to discuss the future of Jordan’s green and digital economy

Amman, Jordan – the International Labour Organization RDPP-II partnership brought together representatives from Jordanian Government Ministries, the private sector, NGOs, implementing agencies and thought leaders to discuss the future of green and digital sectors of the Jordanian economy.

The discussion focused on the opportunities emerging from sectors such as renewable energy, electric vehicles, green agriculture, ecotourism, and ICT, and the skills development required to ensure that the next generation of Jordanians and Syrians can take advantage of the green transition, and secure meaningful, well-paid, and secure employment.

This research falls within the mandate of the research partnership between the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the European Regional Development and Protection Programme for Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq (RDPP II), which aims to support, through evidence-based research and analysis, the Government of Jordan and national constituents in addressing challenges facing youth employment through dialogue around policies and strategies for improving the livelihoods Syrians and Jordanians youth.

The partnership seeks to support the Government in overcoming Jordan’s long-enduring challenges around insufficient job creation, outdated educational provision, and imbalances in educational attainment. In response, a research paper on “Skills for Successful Transitions Towards a Green, Digitally Enabled Economy in Jordan” is being produced.

This research aims to conduct a quantitative and qualitative examination of several target sectors which demonstrate potential for the creation of green, digitally enabled livelihoods for Jordanians and Syrians and gain an understanding of the wider skills climate related to these sectors, specific skills gaps, and priority areas for future focus. The sectors examined by the paper are agriculture, renewable energy, transport, ecotourism, water management, and ICT.


The ultimate objective of the research is to deliver a forward-looking paper with implementable recommendations, and stakeholder engagement has been prioritised throughout the research progresses, which culminated in this workshop.

Following the presentation, open discussions were held with contributions made by representatives of several stakeholders including several government ministries, EBRD, UNHCR, JFJTU, Int@j, the Jordan Strategy Forum, JOHUD, the Crown Prince Foundation, and several others.

Stakeholders focused on the potential for job creation in specific sectors, the need to consider the informality of the economy, the future of entrepreneurship and the gig economy, and the need for better alignment of educational outcomes with labour market needs.

Speaking at the event, RDPP Liaison and Project Manager, Petr Kostohryz, said:

“This is one of five research projects RDPP has been supporting in our partnership with the ILO, looking both at the supply and the demand side of Jordan’s labour market, aiming to generate more data and to invite multiple stakeholders to engage in further policy-based and operational conversations on how to improve access to employment in the country.”