The Jordan Center for Social Research, an independent, non-profit think tank based in Amman, is releasing a public opinion poll today entitled "Local Governance in Jordan." The poll measures the attitudes of citizens in the municipalities of Irbid, Madaba & Karak on the following issues: the most important challenges facing municipalities in Jordan; public attitudes towards local governance; the degree of citizens' satisfaction with the services provided by the municipality; evaluation of the performance of the current municipal council as compared with previous councils; the specific reasons behind citizens' complaints about municipal services; attitudes towards women's political participation at the municipal level; and the criteria that should apply to candidates for municipal office.

This is the second municipal poll presented by JCSR and its partners; the first was released in November 2005 focusing on the municipalities of Salt, Zarqa and Tafileh. The second poll is being presented during a three-day seminar in Amman organized by the International Republican Institute (IRI) bringing together mayors, municipal councilors and members of parliament from Salt, Zarqa, Tafileh, Irbid, Madaba and Karak. The seminar will focus on how public opinion polling can be used by decision makers to better understand citizens' priorities, and improve municipal planning and service delivery to citizens. The seminar and the poll presentation are being held under the patronage of H.E. Nader Thuheirat, the Minister of Municipal Affairs.

The poll's main findings include:

• 66% of respondents in Irbid, 62% in Madaba and 53.6% in Karak think that things are going in the right direction in their municipality.
• Approximately 50% of respondents in all three municipalities support a system in which mayors and all council members are elected by the people. Only between 25-30% of respondents support the current system of appointed mayors and half-elected, half-appointed municipal councils.
• A greater number of respondents in Madaba and Karak think that the previous elected municipal council was more effective than the current council (55.4% vs. 31.4% in Madaba; 46.4% vs. 40% in Karak); only in Irbid do more people think that the current council is better (43% vs. 38%).
• Road paving and maintenance is the number one problem in Irbid and Karak followed by street cleaning. In Madaba, the number one problem is street cleaning followed by road paving and maintenance.
• There is a high level of satisfaction (very satisfied and somewhat satisfied) among the respondents in the three municipalities with the following services: electricity, education, health, mail, and telephone. Satisfaction is lower with regard to public transportation and sewage. Karak has the highest percentages of unsatisfied respondents with regard to public transportation and sewage.
• More than a quarter of citizens in Madaba and Karak say that they have contacted a municipal council member in the past, while 16.6% say they have done so in Irbid. However, only 9% in Karak, 6.8% in Irbid and 6.6% in Madaba say that they have ever been contacted by a municipal council member.
• 75.6% of respondents in Irbid, 73% in Madaba, and 69.8% in Karak intend to vote in the next municipal elections.
• The majority of respondents in all three cities support a quota of seats for women on municipal councils. Majorities also support women voting in municipal elections, women running for a council seat and women running for mayor.
• In all three municipalities, overwhelming majorities of respondents identify the following characteristics to be important for someone running for election (in rank order): good reputation, putting public over personal interest, good record in public service, residing within the locality, religiosity, and having a university degree. More than half think that being male and young is important, whereas political affiliation and being a member of one's own family or tribe are considered to be least important.

The poll's sample consisted of 1,500 persons (500 each in Madaba, Karak and Irbid), 18 years or older (50% male and 50% female), who were randomly selected from each municipality. The sample was selected from 25 locations each in Madaba and Karak, and 50 locations in Irbid. The poll was conducted by 57 field researchers between the 3rd and 7th of January 2006. The margin of error is ±2% at 95% confidence level. The field work for this poll was conducted by Middle East Marketing and Research Consultants (MEMRC).

This poll was supported by the International Republican Institute (IRI.)

For further information or inquiries, contact Dr. Musa Shteiwi
at the Jordan Center for Social Research.

Related Links

Jordan Center for Social Research Complete Survey Findings
Jordan Center for Social Research Graphs of Survey Findings