AMMAN — The refugee situation in Jordan may become a
humanitarian crisis in a matter of months if urgent funding is not provided,
UNHCR, the
UN refugee agency, warned in Amman on Monday.
In a press statement,
the UNHCR said that it lacks $34 million
to implement life-saving health and cash programs in 2022.
“Refugees still
suffer from the economic hit from COVID-19, the cost-of-living crisis, and now
also from rising utility tariffs,” said UNHCR Amman Representative Dominik
Bartsch.
“If no action is
taken now, human suffering and the cost for the international community will be
much higher,” he stressed.
Jordan hosts some
760,000 refugees, mainly Syrians (670,000), Iraqis, Yemenis and other
nationalities. Over 80 percent live in Jordanian communities.
According to the
UNHCR’s recent vulnerability radar, their socioeconomic situation in and
outside camps is increasingly precarious. More and more refugees feel compelled
to borrow money to buy food or pay their rent. About 85 percent of
Syrian refugee households and 93 percent of refugees from other countries were holding
debt in the first quarter of 2022 (up from 79 and 89 percent, respectively, in
the third quarter of 2021). All refugees outside camps were three times more
exposed to eviction threats than in 2018.
The UN agency
added that food insecurity among refugees is also on the rise. A worrying 46
percent of refugee parents say they eat less so that younger children have
enough on the table. In addition, an increasing number of families are sending
their children to collect rubbish and earn a few dinars, which leads to school
dropouts.
A few weeks ago,
refugees currently receiving food assistance were notified that the amounts
will have to be reduced for lack of resources.
“This announcement
is a clear warning sign about rapidly declining international support,” said
Bartsch.
“We are very
concerned about the increasing despair among refugees who see themselves
confronted with yet another experience of uncertainty.”
The UNHCR received
over 400 calls on its helpline in the first week after the announcement, and
numerous messages from worried refugees through other channels.
“In the name of
refugees and the organizations supporting them, I appeal to the international
community not to forget Jordan and its refugees,” the UNHCR representative
said.
“If funding does
not come fast, it is feared that the situation is going to slide back into a
humanitarian crisis in a few months’ time,” Bartsch warned.
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