Land, Housing and Property in Jordan: A review of the legal, institutional and administrative frameworks
The Arab Land Initiative is pleased to release the new report “Land, Housing and Property in Jordan: A review of the legal, institutional and administrative frameworks”, which aims to expand the knowledge and develop capacities of a wide range of stakeholders on land governance, land administration, and housing, land and property rights as a basis for guiding further reform of the land sector and improving its delivery to the people of Jordan.
The Jordanian land tenure system is comprised of a plurality of land rights that include statutory, customary (tribal), religious and informal rights. Private land, encompassing both miri and mulk, can be officially registered. Jordan’s rangelands and tribal territories, known as wajehat el-ashayeria, were historically governed by customary property rights. Religious land tenure, known as waqf, pertains to land endowed to religious institutions. There are also different types of informal land tenure arrangements, including squatters, hujja, tawsiya and informal rental arrangements frequently used by refugees.
Land is one of the most valuable assets in Jordan. Rapid population increase, uncontrolled urban sprawl, land degradation and desertification, changes in consumption patterns, and the additional pressure caused by the influx of refugees have strained Jordan’s land resources, including water, pastures, and ecosystems. These factors have also impacted the sustainable use of land for economic development and access to affordable housing and public services.
The influx of refugees from neighbouring war-torn countries has affected the land tenure of Jordanian citizens. The forced migration caused by the crisis in Iraq in 2003 and Syria in 2012 created high demand for rental housing and resulted in a sudden increase of houses and land prices beyond the financial capabilities of Jordanian citizens, created a gap between housing supply and demand and rendered owning a house more difficult due to the poor sustainability of housing credit support programmes and the lack of small residential land plots (UN-Habitat, 2014). Syrian refugees in Jordan currently have the most precarious land rights, with those living in rented housing facing the highest risk of eviction and displacement.
Official land stakeholders in Jordan are aware of the importance of land administration and constraints and have taken several steps to achieve a more efficient and sustainable land management administration, including for protecting property rights.
“Land, Housing, and Property in Jordan: A review of the legal, institutional, and administrative frameworks” describes policies, laws, regulations, practices, trends and challenges pertinent to the key functions of land administration, namely land tenure, land value, land use, land development and land disputes resolution and draws conclusions related to land management and administration.
On the occasion of the release of the “Land, Housing and Property in Jordan” report, the Jordan page of the Arab Land Initiative website has been updated with a snapshot of Jordan’s land sector, key UN-Habitat and Global Land Tool Initiative interventions in Jordan and a curated selection of other land-related resources.