The unemployment rate in the [Jordanian] Kingdom rose during the fourth quarter of 2012 to 12.5 per cent compared with 12.1 per cent during the same quarter in 2011, according to official figures released Monday.
In its quarterly report on unemployment, the Department of Statistics (DoS) indicated that the joblessness rate was 10.8 per cent among men and 19.9 per cent among women.
The survey results also showed that the unemployment rate was high among university graduates, standing at 16 per cent.
According to the survey, the illiterate constituted 0.8 per cent of the jobless, while those who did not complete high school represented 45.9 per cent.
Unemployment was concentrated among the age brackets of 15-19 and 20-24, standing at 31.8 per cent and 28.8 per cent respectively.
On the governorate level, the highest unemployment rate was recorded in the southern governorate of Tafileh where the unemployment figure reached 19.6 per cent.
Hundreds of Tafileh residents, especially young men, took part in several demonstrations over the past two years, demanding jobs. Tafileh is the smallest governorate, 180km southwest of Amman, with a population of around 87,500, according to DoS figures.
The northern governorate of Ajloun, 70km northwest of the capital, with a population that totals around 143,700, recorded the lowest unemployment rate of 8.3 per cent, according to DoS figures.
The DoS survey covered around 13,000 families from urban, rural and badia areas across the Kingdom. DoS surveys are conducted on quarterly basis.
