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Executive Summary
The unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic is dramatically changing the way millions of women, men, girls and boys around the world lead their lives. Jordan, a country hosting more than 700,000 refugees in a troubled region, has been profoundly affected by the shock of COVID-19 in its economy and social system, like most other countries in the world. Previous outbreaks of infectious diseases have shown us that pandemics can provoke or worsen humanitarian emergencies and amplify the risks that women and girls face gender-based violence (GBV) and circumscribe sexual and reproductive health (SRH) rights and services. ).
In April 2020, the UNFPA country program in Jordan, in coordination with Plan International and the Institute for Family Health (IFH) Noor Al Hussein Foundation, commissioned a rapid assessment of the situation of COVID-19 in Jordan. The overall objective of this rapid assessment is to measure the impact of COVID-19 on gender-based violence and sexual and reproductive health and rights among adolescent girls (defined as the ages of girls (10-17) and young women ( 18-24) in Jordan, including persons with disabilities (PwD).
These findings from this study are derived from a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods with around 400 respondents, including:
- 360 remote and telephone surveys targeting adolescent and adult men and women in the Irbid, Karak, Amman provinces and the Azraq and Za’atari refugee camps;
- 28 interviews with key informants (KII) with VBG and SRH service providers, youth educators and government members; and
- Two focus group discussions (FGD) with women and girls from the Jordanian and refugee population;
A literature review on the gender dimensions of infectious disease outbreaks was conducted, with a particular focus on the impacts of pandemics on gender violence and sexual and reproductive health, to inform the analysis and contextualize the results of this evaluation.
The most important key findings from this evaluation are:
• Women, girls, men and boys of all age groups experience increased stress and anxiety due to the pandemic: the women, girls, men and boys in the survey are experiencing more concern and stress due to the pandemic and the measures taken by The government will limit the spread of the virus. 71 percent of all respondents experience pandemic-related concerns, while adult women in particular reported high levels of concern at 78 percent. Syrians generally reported higher levels of concern than Jordanians at around 10 percent, while refugees of other nationalities (Sudanese, Egyptians, and Gazan) reported very high levels of stress. Palestinians reported the lowest level of concern about the pandemic. Respondents are more concerned with the possibility of a family member becoming infected with the virus and their own risk of infection.
• Women, girls, men and boys are concerned about the economic consequences and have limited access to income-generating activities and material assistance: 86 percent of all respondents believe that the pandemic will threaten economic security and potentially lead to increased poverty, and only 55 percent of women and 58 percent of men reported that they can meet their family’s basic needs during the curfew. Women and girls are much less likely to access IGA and material assistance in all age groups than men and boys, reporting 50 percent or less of access than men. For example, only seven percent of adolescents reported having access to IGA or material assistance compared to 24 percent of children of the same age. The inhibited access of women and girls to this vital assistance compared to men and boys makes them especially vulnerable to dependence on their families, partners or aid agencies, which in turn increases the risk of exploitation. or denial of resources. Given the high level of anxiety reported by respondents about the economic impacts of the pandemic, it is important to guarantee assistance for all groups, but be especially aware of the current inequalities experienced by women and girls in relation to this risk of exploitation. sexual.
• Adolescent girls and boys fear that their education will be compromised by the pandemic: 88 percent of adolescent girls and boys shared that they are looking for a form of remote learning; Jordanian children report higher levels of remote learning than Syrians, while the small number of refugees from other nationalities reported high levels of access, while Palestinians reached 50 percent. Boys and girls are struggling with frustrations and challenges, including suboptimal internet and network connections and difficulties adjusting to the new way of learning. Teenagers at FGD reported stress related to their inability to go to school, as this is a positive experience and expressed concern that these educational changes will negatively affect their future.
• Teenage girls bear higher household burdens and have fewer positive outcomes: 55 percent of teenage girls reported that they and their peers are doing more housework with the pandemic and shutdown measures. Girls also disproportionately take care of younger children at home and help them with their studies, leaving less time for themselves. The girls also regretted their inability to go out and meet their friends and attend school and express distress at the uncertainty of the future. When asked where they can go to voice their concerns about COVID-19 and request information and assistance, almost half of the girls named their family or spouses, suggesting that many girls lack an outlet where they have a high level of confidence outside the family environment.
• Gender-based violence, particularly domestic violence, has increased since the pandemic: a majority of 69 percent of all respondents, as well as key informants and women and girls in FGD agree that gender-based violence has increased since the beginning of the pandemic. Emotional and physical abuse, often perpetrated by an intimate partner or family member, were named as the most common types of gender-based violence. This confirms the large number of anecdotal reports of increasing violence against women and girls, despite the fact that the number of cases registered in GBVIMS has decreased during the same period. This points to the idea that help-seeking behaviors have decreased at the same time that gender violence has increased. Shame, stigmatization of victims, and social pressure continue to be difficult barriers to reporting violence, and movement restrictions are an additional obstacle.
• Access to gender-based violence and SRH services has become more difficult since the pandemic: women and girls agree that obtaining gender-based violence and SRH services before the pandemic was less difficult than during the blockade . Some women and girls also report having used virtual SRH and GBV services, although there are age differences, since a higher percentage of adolescents from 10 to 17 years old (48 percent) had accessed a virtual service than young women from 18 to 24 years (38 percent) and adult women (25 to 23) 49 percent), suggesting that virtual services are more accessible to adolescent girls. Women and girls who had participated in virtual services generally welcomed them and said the service made them feel better, although KIIs with service providers stated that virtual services are not a true replacement for in-person services.
