National Policy Documents

Law No. 31 Of 2007

The first special law for persons with disabilities in Jordan was adopted in 1989. It was abolished in 1993 when it was replaced by the Welfare of Disabled Persons Act No. 12. In 2006, a specialized expert committee in the field of disability, headed by Prince Zeid bin Raad, was formed to review and analyse the Welfare of Disabled Persons Act and its amendments in the light of the provisions of the international Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. In order to ensure the consistency of the Jordanian national legislation with the international Conventions, the Welfare for Disabled Persons Act was replaced by Law No. 31 of 2007 on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. 

This Law is characterized by a shift from a welfare-based to a rights-based approach to disability. The focus has indeed moved from targeted care measures to the protection of the rights of persons with disabilities by removing discriminatory as well as environmental and social barriers. Within that context, the Law stresses the need to protect, inter alia, the freedom of persons with disability, non-discrimination on the basis of disability, their right to equal opportunities, and their right to participate in decision-making relating to their affairs. The requirement to adapt the physical environment to the needs of persons with disability is a pivotal element of the Law’s approach to ensuring these rights. 

Moreover, the Law is considered to be comprehensive in that it addresses the rights and services for persons with disabilities in the areas of health care; education and higher education; vocational training and work; social protection and institutional care; environmental access; customs and tax exemptions; public and political life; sports, culture and leisure; and litigation.

However, despite its rights-based focus and its comprehensiveness, the Law has a number of limitations that relate to the practical steps to be taken in order to protect some of the rights mentioned, the clarity of some sections and provisions, or the monitoring of the provisions under the Law. For example, despite the fact that discrimination is defined and non-discrimination set as a key right, there is a lack of measures sanctioning discrimination or of provisions aimed at ensuring protection against discrimination. Equally, despite the efforts made by the Law to identify measures to equalize opportunities for persons with disabilities, there is an absence of adequate mechanisms aimed at holding the Jordanian administration accountable in cases of non-implementation of the Law’s provisions.

Chapter IV examines more closely the relevant aspects of this important legislation in the fields of education, health, employment and social protection.

National Disability Strategy

The formation of a specialized committee of experts in the field of disability and the formulation of the National Disability Strategy were a response to a royal decree by King Abdullah II in 2006. The Strategy, which was approved by the King in 2007, goes into more details than Law No. 31 and provides guidelines and a framework for action for the period 2007-2015. 

Its overall objective is the respect of the rights of persons with disabilities and their integration in social, economic and public life. It puts special emphasis on issues of accessibility to infrastructures and social services and incorporates the following main principles and objectives:

1. A decline in the occurrence of disability and an improvement in the standard and quality of life for persons with disabilities;
2. The achievement of greater equity, equality and equalization of opportunities than had previously existed;
3. Increased empowerment for persons with disabilities reflected through greater independence and self-reliance;
4. Further empowerment of persons with disabilities to participate and engage in community life;
5. Further integration of persons with disabilities in different areas of life, including educational, professional, vocational and social. 

This overview of the Strategy’s principles and objectives clearly reveals its focus on rights and the importance accorded to the equalization of opportunities to facilitate the inclusion of persons with disabilities. In addition to this rights-based approach, the Strategy has a number of strengths. First, it acknowledges the obstacles encountered by persons with disabilities in Jordan, thereby emphasizing the issue of discrimination and the weak quality and quantity of services for persons with disabilities. 

Second, it clearly identifies, describes and sets milestones for ten relevant areas of intervention as follows: (a) legislation; (b) prevention and health care; (c) education, higher education and scientific research; (d) family empowerment and social protection; (e) economic empowerment; (f) communication and physical accessibility; (g) media, awareness and communication; (h) habilitation and rehabilitation; (i) equal opportunities and public life; (j) sports and leisure; and (k) culture.

The first phase of the Strategy ended in 2009 and the first monitoring review is due in May 2010. The main limitation of this Strategy relates to the financing of its implementation. Notably, the question of funding is barely addressed. The Strategy provides cost estimates for the different programmes and activities of the plan as well as a total estimated cost for the implementation of the Strategy, which is set at 64.64 million Jordan dinars (or approximately US$91 million) over 2007-2015. However, it does not contain relevant information on the sources of financing.[1] This raises questions related to the availability of actual funds for the implementation of the Strategy and, consequently, its viability.

Chapter IV investigates the provisions of the National Disability Strategy in areas relating to social development. It compares those provisions with the actual, prevailing situation.

Other Relevant Strategies and Documents

Law No. 31 and the National Disability Strategy constitute the two main policy documents relating to persons with disabilities. However, the needs and rights of this vulnerable group are also addressed to some extent by other policy documents, including the National Agenda (2006-2015); the Executive Programme 2007-2009 for the National Agenda; the National Youth Strategy for Jordan (2005-2009); the National Strategy for the Jordanian Family; the National Strategy for Women in Jordan; the National Jordanian Strategy for Senior Citizens; and the National Mine Action Plan (2005-2009).[2]

Some of these documents refer to persons with disabilities occasionally (for example, the National Agenda or the National Strategy for Women), while others treat it as a cross-cutting theme (for example, the National Youth Strategy). Moreover, while some strategies recall the rights of persons with disabilities (for example the Executive Programme which mentions the right of persons with disabilities to employment in suitable positions or to education in a suitable environment), others provide policy recommendations and stress general measures to be taken (for example, the National Strategy for the Jordanian Family in the area of social protection). 

The references made by these policy documents to persons with disabilities point to the commitment of the Government in mainstreaming the issue of persons with disabilities into social policies. The coherence between the provisions of the National Disability Strategy and Law No. 31 and, on the other hand, the rights and policy measures promoted by other strategies or action plans documents the interest of the Government in addressing the equalization of opportunities for persons with disabilities in the different social fields.