Funding Crisis Forces Reduction in Aid for Syrian Refugees in Jordan
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Salma Hossein
- . July 19, 2023
- . Update: July 19, 2023 8:07 pm
The 120,000 Syrian refugees residing in the Zaatari and Azraq camps in Jordan will receive reduced monthly monetary assistance, the World Food Programme (WFP) stated on Tuesday. An “unprecedented funding crisis” that the organisation is currently experiencing prompted this choice. Jordan, which has an 11 million-person population and hosts about 1.3 million Syrian refugees, cannot fill the financing gap left by other donors. Starting in August, the monthly cash allotment will drop from $32 to $21. This action brings to light the persistent challenges that UN agencies and humanitarian organisations confront in raising the funds necessary to aid Syrian refugees and address the crisis in the war-torn nation.
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The WFP’s decision to reduce cash aid for Syrian refugees in Jordan resulted from an unprecedented funding crisis. The financing gap encountered by UN agencies and humanitarian organisations delivering aid in Syria and surrounding countries results from several factors, including donor fatigue, the economic impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, and the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. The Syrian conflict has reached a standstill despite considerable geographical advances gained by President Bashar Assad’s administration with the assistance of allies Russia and Iran.
The lives of Syrian refugees living in the camps of Zaatari and Azraq are directly impacted by the decline in cash assistance. The monthly stipend will drop from $32 to $21, adding to the financial stress on families and vulnerable persons. Jordanian officials have warned that their country cannot support the refugees independently and have emphasised their inability to fill the budget gap left by foreign donors. The WFP’s decision to progressively stop providing aid to all 50,000 refugees in Jordan worsens the already terrible situation.
The reduction in funding to Jordan has compelled aid organisations to focus on the most vulnerable families, leaving many others needing assistance. This circumstance generates worries about the worsening of a humanitarian catastrophe and its possible effects on the host communities and the refugees. Millions of Syrian refugees living in Lebanon and Turkey have also been impacted by the budget reductions, where there has been a spike in anti-refugee rhetoric and calls for mass deportations due to political and economic unrest.
Ayman Safadi, the foreign minister of Jordan, emphasised that ensuring that refugees live honourable lives is a shared worldwide responsibility and not only the host nation’s responsibility. He has been leading regional negotiations with Damascus to find a way to end the crisis and called for increased investment in Syria’s infrastructure to encourage voluntary refugee returns. However, Western nations have not approved of normalising relations with Assad or supporting reconstruction efforts like Arab nations have, and they continue to impose sanctions on Syria despite charges of war crimes and involvement in the drug trade.
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The drop in monthly financial aid for Syrian refugees in Jordan due to the funding issue underscores the difficulties that UN organisations and humanitarian groups confront in addressing the needs of displaced people. These financial reductions have an effect on Jordan as well as the neighbouring nations hosting Syrian refugees. To address the growing humanitarian catastrophe and guarantee the delivery of crucial aid to vulnerable populations affected by the protracted Syrian conflict, urgent international support is needed.
