This report concerns the results of a survey on children’s literature and the promotion of reading in Palestine as represented by the West Bank and the Gaze Sector. Emphasis is placed on a number of axes regarding children’s literature;; including policies and legislation;; programs and institutions;; libraries;; elementary schools and universities;; and the publishing and distribution of children’s books. Upon analysis of the state of children’s literature in Palestine;; this report identifies certain trends regarding child culture. It also identifies a number of problems facing the promotion of reading among children;; including financial constraints;; the quality and availability of libraries;; and the overarching challenges influenced by Israel occupation.

This report concerns the results of a survey on children’s literature and the promotion of reading in Syria. Emphasis is placed on a number of axes regarding children’s literature;; including policies and legislation;; programs and institutions;; libraries;; elementary schools and universities;; and general information regarding children’s books. Upon analysis of the state of children’s literature in Syria;; this report identifies certain trends regarding children's literature. It also identifies a number of problems facing the promotion of reading among children and makes a number of recommendations for the development and improvement of children’s literature.

The report assesses the practical challenges of education and schooling for the Syrian children in refugee camps in Jordan;; Lebanon and Egypt as the Syrian Crisis prolongs. It argues that ensuring the continued access to learning is an essential platform for protection;; social stabilization and economic recovery that the international community should not ignore. The report also includes important figures and statistics revealing the alarming situation of education and school. Some of the key statistics are the host-country school-age children compared to Syrian school-age children;; Syrian children enrolled in public schools in Lebanon and Jordan and school-age Syrian refugee children in and out of school by countries such as Iraq;; Egypt;; Turkey;; Jordan and Lebanon. The report concludes with four key recommendations to be undertaken by regional governments and their international partners so that the fundamental right to quality education can be guaranteed to the Syrian children.

The final report is the product of the Jordan Tourism Development Project;; which is a three-year project that operated from August 2005 to August 2008. The Project worked closely with government stakeholders;; particularly the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities and Department of Antiquities;; along with the private sector;; local communities and the tourism industry to help develop Jordan's tourism industry. As part of the project;; the USAID/Jordan's primary aim was to develop Jordan's key tourism institutions and improve the institutional environment to better facilitate tourism development. The project also worked to change perceptions of the industry through a nationwide campaign that entailed workshops;; training sessions and delivering key messages by distributing brochures;; flyers and posters. According to the report;; the work of the USAID/ Jordan Tourism Development Project has created strong momentum among the government and private sectors;; as well as communities;; for positive development of tourism in Jordan;; leaving much scope for further development of the country's tourism sector to bring Jordan closer to operating a full-fledged tourism industry that attracts increasing numbers of tourists and effectively meets their growing demands. The report also finds several areas that still need improvement such as the awareness of the importance of tourism to Jordan;; marketing and recruitment for tourism institutions and standards of tourism accommodation.

The USAID Jordan Tourism Development Project is the largest dedicated tourism development project implemented by the United States Agency for International Development. The final report for the project phase of 2008-2013 shares success stories of developing Jordan's tourism sector and increasing the number of visitors to the country according to the updated national strategy for the current period with new targets and implementation of actions. The report highlights the projects' achievements in supporting archaeological conservation of key sites such as Petra;; Madaba and Amman Citadel and improving the visitor experience in Jordan through an extenstive nationwide training program. The final report also includes the stories of those who benefitted from USAID's investment in tourism and the USAID tourism project's comprehensive sustainable tourism industry development approach.

يأتي اصدار هذا التقرير في سياق التقارير والنشرات الصحفية التي يصدرها المرصد العمالي الاردني التابع لمركز الفينيق. وأصدر هذا التقرير الصحفي بمناسبة احتفال العالم بيوم المرأة العالمي ليتناول واقع مشاركة المراة اقتصادياً;; وخاصة في سوق العمل. وللوقوف على ما تم انجازه حتى الان في مجال زيادة مشاركة المراة في الحياة الاقتصادية. وكما قدم التقرير توصيات لتذليل بعض العقبات التي تقف أمام المراة;; للاندماج أكثر في الحياة الاقتصادية وسوق العمل.

This pilot study report was initiated by the European Training Foundation (ETF);; in close cooperation with the National Center for Human Resources Development (NCHRD) in Jordan;; in the framework of the ETF multiannual project Observatory Function Development in Jordan. The focus of this report is unemployment. However;; considering that unemployment information in itself should not be used or analysed in isolation from other indicators or data;; the report begins by providing an overview of the general labour market situation in Jordan. After the main data on employment by sector;; age;; gender and level of education are presented;; on the basis of the available information;; the specific cases of non-Jordanian employees and employment in the informal economy are highlighted as topics requiring special attention in the Jordanian labour market. In conclusion;; two groups of recommendations are proposed: (i) technical recommendations to main information providers for improving the quality of the information collected;; and (ii) a set of policy recommendations for tackling unemployment. These recommendations are intended to support policymakers in their commitment and willingness to adapt both the formal and informal education and training system and the whole labour market in Jordan.

This paper aims at shedding light on the labor rights in Jordan;; particularly for those who are working in the informal sector;; through identifying the factors that impede them from enjoying such rights and;; thus;; coming up with the appropriate recommendations in this area.