During this year’s Gender Equality Week, we turn our attention to what is threatening to roll back gains made on furthering gender equality around the world - the COVID-19 pandemic.

We have written about the global consequences of the novel coronavirus on communities experiencing oppression where the socio-economic effects have laid bare the fissures in our social safety nets and market systems, but have since taken the opportunity to learn more about the localized effects on gender equality and social inclusion (GESI) in MEDA’s programming.

MEDA’s Jordan Valley Links (JVL) project has been using Gender Progress Markers (GPMs) as a measurement tool, supplementing its other monitoring and evaluation techniques, to thoughtfully and deliberately observe the changes in social and gender dynamics affecting women and men in their families and local communities. These markers help us move beyond numbers and quantitative data; they let us look at how attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors related to gender progress changes over the life of a project.

I have had the opportunity to spend time in Amman, Jordan, as part of the Jordan Valley Links team. This Government of Canada-funded program works to support economic and social development for women and youth in the Jordan Valley. My experience has been generously funded by MEDA’s private donors. While this internship was initially created to support hopeful international development workers in gaining practical, on-the-ground experience in the communities in which MEDA works, my experience has been eye opening in other ways.

With the COVID 19 crisis erupting globally, financial institutions have been forced to quickly respond and rethink how they can offer quality services to their clients who are now faced with unemployment and stacking debt.

This is my third visit to Ghour Al Safi (South Jordan) to meet the women participating in the Gender Progress Markers (GPM) process (see previous blog on GPM). As in other districts of the Jordan Valley, Ghour Al Safi is an agricultural area in which women are usually working in their family’ farms and men are working either in agricultural careers or they join the military. Unlike the middle and the northern valleys, Ghour Al Safi is a very conservative area and the women there are facing different social and cultural barriers.  

The Jordan Valley Links (JVL) project aims to improve the entrepreneurial and business acumen of women and youth and reduce both market and socio-cultural barriers to their entry for enterprise development. The project provides access to finance and works in food processing; community-based tourism, and clean technologies, ensuring these sectors strive for environmentally sustainability and gender-responsive practices.

Ahmad Nahnoush

Ahmad Nahnoush is a 27-year-old geology engineer, community mobiliser and ambassador for teaching families and communities on how to integrate clean technologies into their everyday lives. Clean technology is simply any process, product or service that reduces negative environmental impacts through energy efficiency improvements, resource sustainability or environmental protection practices.

Anwar, the author, Anwar’s daughter, and Eithar (Access to Finance Specialist) at the event

The Jordan Valley Links (JVL) project aims to improve the entrepreneurial and business acumen of women and youth and reduce both market and socio-cultural barriers to their entry for enterprise development. The project works in access to finance, food processing; community-based tourism, and clean technologies, ensuring all these sectors strive for environmentally sustainability and gender-responsive practices.

My name is Connor Taylor, and I am the Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Intern stationed in Jordan for MEDA’s Jordan Valley Links (JVL) project. I began my assignment in January 2019 and will be in Jordan until July 2019. My educational background is in Middle East History and my dream is to serve people around the world by supporting international development initiatives.

Forests are vulnerable and can easily be taken for granted in countries like Canada that are rich in this natural resource. In Jordan, a country experiencing the impact of climate change and deforestation through desertification, only 0.1% of its land is covered by forests. Forests are considered a novelty in Jordan; every year, thousands of tourists visit the country’s forests.

However, Jordan’s forests are under threat. As temperatures soar, drought and desertification are encroaching on the country’s forest reserves. This is in addition to the urban pressures brought on by population growth, urban sprawl and lack of awareness about environmental challenges.

Children of various ages at the JOHUD daycare

The Jordan Valley Links project aims to improve the entrepreneurial and business acumen of women and youth and reduce both market and socio-cultural barriers to their entry for enterprise development. The project works in three sectors: food processing; community-based tourism; and clean technologies. On a recent monitoring trip, I visited our food processing partner – the Jordanian Hashemite Fund for Human Development (JOHUD). They are working on South Shouneh in the Jordan Valley, focusing on technical and financial management training for women entrepreneurs, and linking them to more profitable markets for their processed herbs and pickles. These women have been processing herbs and vegetables since a young age, but very few have the skills and market knowledge to graduate their food processing endeavors into a viable economic activity. The JOHUD-MEDA partnership is accelerating the number of women getting trained and linkages to market created for the aspiring women entrepreneurs.

To mark Canada's first Gender Equality Week 2018, MEDA is highlighting important issues and voices around women’s economic empowerment and gender equality in the area of economic development. This is the first installment of our #EveryoneBenefits blog series. This is a conversation between one of our Jordan staff members and her son on the topic of child marriage. 

On a Saturday night, I was reading the National Report on Early Marriage Status in Jordan, going through all the surprising statistics made me so sad. Just like other kids, my 10 years old son – Obada - tends to rush through dinner as he usually can’t wait to get back to “hot wheels cars”. But looking at my sad face this time he stuck around to know what makes me feel depressed. When he asked I thought to listen to his opinion, his perspective and thinking about early marriage.

So, we had the following conversation: