Reaching its thirteenth year of war, Syria remains a complex humanitarian and protection emergency both inside Syria and the neighboring countries. Jordan hosted more than 672,000 registered Syrian refugees, however the actual total is estimated at around 1.3 million when those not registered are considered. Around 90% of the Syrian refugees live outside the camps in urban, peri-urban, and rural areas, with almost 80% of the Syrian refugees live below the poverty line in Jordan. Most Syrian families are relying on humanitarian assistance to meet their basic needs.
The impact of Syrian’s refugee crisis on the Jordan’s economy is high. There are significant structural issues facing the Jordanian economy: insufficient revenue, costly subsidies and a large public sector, water scarcity, and dependence on energy imports. These continue to impact growth, and the situation of Jordanians, particularly in the hosting communities, is becoming more difficult. The crisis also has its huge impact on the socio-economic situation of Jordanians and other population segments such as Palestinian refugees and other refugee population. The crisis has incredible cost for Jordanian families, specifically the younger Jordanian workforce.
The crisis added increasing competition on natural resources and added more pressure on protected areas especially in the northern and eastern parts of the country. It has created more pressure on ecosystem goods and services and had very negative impact on waste management that increased by 30% which was generated because of receiving more than a million of Syrian refugees.
ACT Jordan forum is preparing an appeal to respond to the needs of the affected communities. ACT members: DSPR, ELCJHL, and MECC are getting ready to respond to the protracted humanitarian crisis with focus on sectors of Livelihoods, Food security, Health, Education, and Protection.
