Jordan witnessed a 10 per cent drop in births and a 9 per cent increase in deaths during 2020, according to the Department of Statistics’ annual report.

As per the report, registered births decreased by 56 births per day and deaths increased by 7.7 deaths per day.

According to the local women’s organisation, Solidarity Is Global Institute (SIGI), there were 176,557 live births in the Kingdom in 2020 and 48.7 per cent of them were female. In 2020, there were 32,653 deaths recorded, of which 40.7 per cent were also female, according to the institute.

SIGI reported that 176,557 live births were recorded in Jordan in 2020, compared with 197,287 live births in 2019, while 32,653 deaths were recorded compared with 29,836 deaths in 2019. The total fertility rate per female between 15-49 years was 2.7 children.

The capital witnessed 73,000 births, the highest percentage of births out of the total births that took place in the Kingdom, followed by Irbid then Zarqa, based on SIGI’s report.

Munir Idaibes, CEO of SIGI, indicated that the drop in birth rates was not only in 2020, but also in 2019 when compared to 2018 and years preceding.

"Jordan’s economic situation is the main cause of this drop. Young people have a tough time finding jobs and meeting the financial requirements for marriage and children,” Idaibes told The Jordan Times on Monday.

Idaibes said that the pandemic "worsened economic situations” due to the lockdowns, job losses and many other factors, which has made families more hesitant to have children.

"As long as the economic conditions are deteriorating and there are high rates of unemployment, along with the continuous effects of the pandemic, it will lead to the reluctance of young people to marry or have children, resulting in an imbalance in the demographic structure in the Kingdom,” Idaibes added.