'Hafez' initiative, 'Youth and Technology' project reach 4,780 people

AMMAN — The Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship on Saturday announced that 4,780 people benefited from the "Hafez" initiative and the "Youth and Technology" project during the past year, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

According to the ministry's data, the total number of the two programmes’ beneficiaries reached 2,180 last year.

A total of 1,360 people benefited from the initiative through the "Support for Graduates' Wages in Private Sector Companies" programme, which aims to provide temporary job opportunities by subsiding 50 per cent of wages, up to a maximum of JD200, to be paid through the Social Security Corporation for a period not exceeding six months. 

A number of 820 people also benefited from the initiative through the "Digital Transformation" programme, which aims to provide temporary job opportunities for digital transformation projects. 

Implementing parties receive JD25 from each employer, with a minimum of 20 jobs, and the monthly allowance is JD400 for one beneficiary, with the condition that a laptop should be with the recipient.

The data indicated that companies wishing to benefit from the initiative’s two programmes can submit their applications through the Ministry of Digital Economy’s website, or through the Social Security Corporation’s electronic accounts.

Data from the Ministry of Digital Economy shows that the total number of beneficiaries of the "Youth and Technology" project last year reached 2,600.

The "Youth and Technology" project was launched by the government in 2020 with funding from the World Bank and donor countries, which valued $200 million to improve income opportunities from the Jordanian digital sector and expand government digital services.

The project works, through its various programmes and incentives, to activate the supply and demand sides of the digital sector over a period of five years, with the aim of providing 30,000 new job opportunities for youth, digitalise more than 80 per cent of government payment transactions, and attract about $20 million in new investments from the private sector for digital services, Petra reported.