AMMAN, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Statistics recently released by the Jordanian Ministry of Social Development speculate that there will be a notable increase in the number of people begging in the country in the next two months because for many students from impoverished families, the summer break means begging.

As summer holidays begin, hundreds of students from impoverished families have to eke out a living by begging near upscale coffee shops and busy traffic intersections, The Jordan Times reported on Friday.

The report said that boys and girls between the ages of six and 14 roamed the streets in Amman to look for handouts from passers by despite scorching summer heat, with temperatures often reaching as high as 40 degrees centigrade.

Officials of the Jordanian Ministry of Social Development were quoted as saying that they were looking into ways of tackling the problem, but acknowledged that it was "an uphill battle."

"We pick kids up off the streets, but as soon as we release them, they return again," said Mohammad Elian, a ministry inspector.

According to figures from the ministry, some 15 percent of Jordanians live below the poverty line, which means that they subsist on the equivalent of 140 U.S. dollars a month or less. Enditem