No menial task in Jordan

There is little doubt that reform over the past 15 years is helping Jordan to grow. The Jordanian economy has done especially well recently: Jordan’s real gross domestic product grew by 6.4% in 2006, while foreign and internal indebtedness fell last year to 73% of GDP, from 84% in 2005, and the deficit in the government’s budget represented 4.4% of gross domestic product in 2006, from 5.3% the year before. Prospects for 2007 are also good; and, barring regional conflagration, the outlook for next year is bright as well. Growth nevertheless hides variations in economic performance. For example, cutting unemployment is a main goal of reform. However, at 14% in 2006 and around the same level today, joblessness is still high, and has been in double-digits for the past two decades. That was not always the case: in the mid-70s and early 80s, due to public sector expansion, strong economic