5 agreements signed to improve working conditions for farmers in Northeastern Badia

AMMAN — Blumont, an NGO that works for the benefit of refugees and host populations, has signed five agreements with agriculture cooperatives to improve working conditions for farmers and workers in the Northeastern Badia region.  

The five agreements, signed on behalf of the French-funded Smart DESERT project, seek to improve working conditions for Syrian refugees and vulnerable Jordanians through legal support, training, and awareness campaigns on labour rights while strengthening the ability of cooperatives to act as more effective advocates for decent work conditions, according to a Blumont's statement to The Jordan Times.

As part of the Smart DESERT project activities, funded by the French Development Agency (AFD), Blumont has delivered a training of trainer programme to the cooperatives that focused on labour rights, raising work standards, and relevant by-laws, regulations, and procedures related to employment contracts, flexible work permits, and workplace inspections, the statement said.

The trained cooperatives will in turn cascade training to employers and workers alike to educate them on labour rights, including child labour and protection issues, access to health insurance and schooling for farm workers and their families, raised working and living conditions on farms, as well as gender equality and female-empowerment principles.

Caroline Haddad, Blumont Jordan Country Director, said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the vulnerabilities of Syrian and Jordanian agricultural workers, leading to increased poverty, deteriorating wages and work conditions, and higher risks to children, including school dropout, child labor, and child marriage.”

“The Jordanian government has made significant strides in efforts to improve work conditions and formalise the sector, yet much more needs to be done to educate workers and employers on labour rights and decent work standards, with opportunities to elevate the role of agricultural cooperatives in furthering these rights,” she noted.

The Smart DESERT project aims to create “a paradigm shift” in the agricultural sector in Jordan by improving the regularity of the Jordanian and Syrian beneficiaries' income throughout the year in the North-East Badia Highlands, the statement said.

Blumont is implementing the project in partnership with the International Union for Conservation of Nature, Horizons for Green Development, Greentech, and Inter-Islamic Network on Water Resources Development and Management, read the statement.