Provision and use of health and education services in rural Balqa, Jordan

Rashid, Hussein Mansour Haj (1989) Provision and use of health and education services in rural Balqa, Jordan. University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.

Record type: Thesis (Doctoral)

Abstract

Over the last 15 years large differences in the level of service provision have occurred between the urban and rural areas of Jordan. These disparities have resulted from rapid and unbalanced economic development when planners paid little attention to the needs of more backward rural areas. This unbalance now constitutes a major issue for governmental planning agencies although little research has yet been done on the service deficiencies and planning problems of rural Jordan. The present study attempts to fill part of that gap by making an examination of provision and use of two vital public services - health and education - in the rural part of Balqa Governorate. After a brief review of rural problems in general, the particular problems of health and education provision in rural areas are identified and the factors influencing their provision during the plan periods in Jordan are considered. The provision of education and health care in rural Balqa is first examined on the basis of governorate data and in relation to the population and village structure. An empirical field survey involving a questionnaire to 700 households in 29 selected villages forms the basis of the bulk of the research. At the village and household scale the research focusses on three main aspects: the provision of health and education facilities; the spatial behaviour of households in the use of these services; and, accessibility to these services and how it can be improved. The analysis reveals that the level of accessibility to basic health care and compulsory education levels is, in general, good as a result of rapid improvement in provision in recent years. But the quality of access between large and small villages still differs. Many small villages still have inadequate access to these services. The case studies also show that these services are often of low standard compared with urban areas. This is especially the case for more specialist health services and secondary education. On the basis of this analysis of service provision and use in the 29 villages, suggestions for improving levels of access to services in rural areas of Balqa are made and a framwork for future service provision put forward.

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