Sectoral Policies and Initiatives in Social Protection

Policies focusing on social protection address the availability of monetary and non-monetary support and their adaptability to the specific needs of persons with disabilities and their families. Law No. 31 states the need to provide persons with disabilities who are unable to work with monthly aid. There are no provisions in the Law referring to pensions.

The National Disability Strategy addresses more extensively the social and financial problems facing persons with disabilities and their families and sets forth the following measures and objectives:

1. Ensure that persons with disabilities and their families who live in poverty have access to financial assistance to cover not only their living expenses and protect their family, but also to cover expenses related to disability. This includes financial assistance for the disabled person or for his/her temporary care, including funds for counselling services and appropriate training in some cases;
2. Ensure that persons with disabilities have an equal right to property and inheritance and cannot be arbitrarily deprived of these; 
3. Ensure that legal guardians and financial advisors of persons with disabilities are using the funds in the interest of the health, welfare and comfort of persons with disabilities;
4. Ensure that persons with disabilities are able to make use of public housing programmes and insurance programmes available to all Jordanian citizens on an equal basis;
5. Ensure that persons with disabilities have the right and access to the retirement funds or part thereof upon the death of their parents;
6. Reduce the number of years of service before entitlement to social security, and reduce the retirement age for persons with disabilities who are employed. 

It is important to note that the creation of a social safety net for persons with special needs is also an element of the Executive Programme 2007-2009 for the National Agenda.

The National Disability Strategy stresses the role of the family in empowering, protecting and meeting the needs of its members with disabilities. In this framework, the role of the State is to provide moral and material support to those families that do not enjoy the level of social protection and income necessary to meet heavy financial burdens. Equally, State support to persons with disabilities is set forth in the National Strategy for the Jordanian Family, which underlines that providing services to such families is crucial in order to enable family fulfillment. Within that framework, the Strategy promotes the following:

1. Raising awareness about the characteristics of persons with disabilities and the needs of their families;
2. Providing cognitive and financial support to the families of persons with disabilities;
3. Empowering the families of persons with disabilities;
4. Providing mechanisms to integrate persons with disabilities into the society.

In addition, the National Strategy for the Jordanian Family sheds light on the need for State intervention in reforming the legislation regarding providing care to persons with disabilities and improving the services available to children with disabilities and their families.

While gender issues are not addressed by the National Disability Strategy or Law No. 31 in the sections on social protection, the National Strategy for Women in Jordan does mention the need to extend special care and attention to handicapped women in the social field. It suggests, for example, providing these women with special services, including social rehabilitation, in order to facilitate their reintegration into society.