The seminar was summoned by the Norwegian Shepherd and by Jordan in cooperation with the Canadian Gavel holder, in order to review the status of the activities concerning the Data Base Theme, and, particularly, to review the results of the Jordan Living Conditions Survey concerning the situation for Palestinian refugees residing in Jordan. The seminar gathered the core regional parties, and the Shepherds for the various themes of the Refugee Working Group, as well as the Gavel Holder and the Co-sponsors of the Multilateral Peace Talks for the Middle East.

Fafo, Institute for Applied Social Research presented the results from the Jordan Living Conditions Survey, that has been commissioned by the Government of Jordan and implemented by the Jordan Department of Statistics and Fafo, in cooperation with UNICEF Amman, the International Development Research Center and the Canadian International Development Agency. Norway and Canada jointly provided the necessary funding.

The delegations commended Jordan for having made this rich set of data available. The participants welcomed the Jordanian announcement to provide results for further research. The seminar commended Fafo for analyzing and presenting the results concerning refugees to the Refugee Working Group, and recommended that the material be published to a broader public. Delegations expressed the hope that the Parties to the negotiations would find the information helpful.

The experts reviewed the results presented and took particular notice of the following main conclusions from the data:

When the various dimensions and aspects of the living conditions for refugees are compared to those for non-refugees, it appears that there are only minor differences between refugees and non-refugees. But there are two main exceptions:

First refugees living in camps are worse off in relation to employment, health, income and education. However, camp refugees have good access to amenities and infrastructure.

Second, the labor market in Jordan works somewhat differently for refugees and non-refugees: The refugees work more often in the private sector and less in the public sector than non-refugees.They have less often formal working contracts, due to the nature of the labour market, even if they have similar income.

The poverty is similar for both refugees and non-refugees. All groups increase the probability of being poor if the household head has little education or has poor health, or if there are no employed household members. This result indicates that measures aiming to improve the situation for refugees will basically be similar to those that could be envisaged for the non-refugees in Jordan. In this respect the JLCS vindicates the decision of the Government of Jordan to improve the infrastructure of refugee camps under its Social Productivity Program.

The delegations commended the Government of Jordan for extending its hospitality to the Palestinian refugees and in allowing them access to the social and economic resources of Jordan. They took note of UNRWA`s important efforts in providing basic services for the refugees and in particular to those living in the camps. Still, the data suggests that uncovered needs remain among the camp refugees. The participants suggested various ways in which the international community could help address these needs.

• Participants recommended to Jordan to target refugees particularly within the framework of the forthcoming Social Productivity Program.
• Participants recommended that further studies be conducted to enhance our understanding of poverty and needs in the refugee camps, and to practical measures to improve living conditions.
• The Shepherds were invited to make the fullest possible use of the collected data and the reports. They were invited to provide feedback to the Norwegian Shepherd on their further data needs.
  
• Delegates advised Fafo to make brief comparisons with data on living conditions from other areas, both for refugees living in camps and outside camps.
• Cooperation with UNRWA in the utilization of that important agency’s extensive and complimentary data resources for additional analysis was identified as a rich area for further follow-up research. It was also noted that UNRWA had in place mechanisms to address many humanitarian concerns with respect to the refugee population, providing that adequate funds for UNRWA was made available.

The seminar discussed further priorities and data needs. It lauded the richness of the Living Conditions Survey concept and methodology offered by Norway and by Fafo, and recommended that this methodology be used in further surveys. The seminar identified a core set of indicators that were recommended to use. The seminar recommended that the Norwegian Shepherd expands the use of this methodology to other host countries in the region.

The seminar took note of the recommendations of the international mission to Lebanon with respect to data base needs on the Palestinian community in that country.

On behalf of the whole seminar, the Norwegian shepherd expressed its warmest thanks for the hospitality of the Government of Jordan in hosting the seminar in the beautiful town of Aqaba. The Shepherd also thanked all participants for sharing so generously their ideas, their expertise and their guidance.