World Food Programme Exacerbates the Suffering of Syrian Refugees in Jordan: Why Did It Cut Aids?

The pressures on Syrian refugees in Jordan are increasing as some international organizations repeatedly cut subsidies. This leaves them and their children stranded in a severe and escalating humanitarian crisis that threatens to engulf them.

In the latest developments, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi announced that the United Nations’ World Food Programme will cease vital aid to Syrian refugees in the kingdom starting from early August 2023.

 

New Suffering

Safadi stated on Thursday, July 13, 2023, “This is not on Jordan. It is on those who are cutting support. We can’t carry this burden alone,” while urging the United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP) to reverse its decision to cut food subsidies to Syrian refugees by August 1.

The WFP office in Amman told Reuters that an “unprecedented funding crisis” had forced it to cut food help for 50,000 out of some 465,000 refugees it was helping in Jordan.

Safadi mentioned consultations with regional host countries to hold a meeting aimed at developing a joint response to the decreased support for Syrian refugees, stressing that the burden of providing them with a dignified life cannot continue to be held by Jordan alone.

The current population of Jordan is approximately 10.961 million, hosting over 1.3 million Syrians who fled the Syrian regime’s repression and bombardment of their cities since 2011, including 761,580 officially registered refugees.

Around 82.6% of these refugees live in Jordanian cities and villages outside of refugee camps, with children (under 18) making up about 46% of the refugee population.

The Zaatari camp, located about 85 kilometers northeast of Amman near the Syrian border, shelters around 80,000 refugees.

Syrian refugees constitute 20% of Jordan’s population, and the cost of hosting these refugees exceeded ten billion dollars by 2017, according to the kingdom.

Syrian refugees receive financial aid through valid Visa cards, allowing them to purchase life essentials from Jordanian stores. However, luxury items are not allowed to be purchased using these cards.

 

‘Unprecedented Funding Crisis’

Reuters quoted the World Food Programme office in Amman on July 13, 2023, stating that an unprecedented funding crisis forced the organization to halt food aid to 50,000 out of 465,000 refugees they were assisting in Jordan.

However, the organization decided to reduce its monthly assistance in July 2023 by one-third, citing a shortfall of $115.8 million to cover the food needs of 465,000 refugees in camps and communities.

The report further mentioned that around 96% of the beneficiaries in May 2023 were from Syria, 3% from Iraq, and the rest from Yemen, Sudan, Somalia, and other countries.

The program provides $32 per month for each individual in “extreme need” families and $21 per month for each individual in “moderate need” families.

Food insecurity is the state in which people find themselves with limited or uncertain access to adequate food.

Earlier in April 2023, David Beasley, the Executive Director of the World Food Programme, expressed concern about the inability to secure the $23 billion needed for the program in 2023 to assist millions in need.

Beasley also warned that the world would witness mass migration, and countries such as Somalia, South Sudan, Syria, and Lebanon would be at risk of destabilization if the required funding is not available.

At a time when United Nations humanitarian agencies and other relief groups are struggling to keep up with aid for Syrians due to rising needs and declining funding flows, Syrian refugees are facing harsh choices.

 

Calculated Pressure

In this context, Syrian journalist specializing in economic affairs Ali Ibrahim said that the decision of the United Nations World Food Programme to cut vital aid to Syrian refugees will be more disastrous for those who are outside the camps, struggling with soaring prices, house rent, and trying to find work for all family members to meet basic needs.

“If international aid reductions continue, especially as the crisis is related to funding, it will force refugees to further reduce their meals beyond the usual and resort to exhausting work and financial borrowing,” Ibrahim added to Al-Estiklal.

He linked “the step of cutting vital food aid to Syrian refugees with the reintegration of the Syrian regime into the international community again, and talking about their resettlement in their homeland.”

Additionally, there is “an attempt by some donor countries to exert pressure on Syrian refugees as part of a calculated policy to compel them to return to their homeland, and this is one of the methods.”

A survey conducted by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in June 2023 showed that 97% of Syrian refugees surveyed in Jordan had no intention of returning in the next 12 months, while only 0.8% expressed a desire to do so.

“The Syrian regime wants to repatriate these refugees as it is confident that international financial support will resume through various organizations operating within Syria with its facilitation,” according to Ibrahim.

This move will increase the regime’s financial flow, thus relieving the burden on the host countries for these refugees and shifting the responsibility back to Bashar al-Assad’s regime, according to his estimation.

“Therefore, the countries hosting the refugees still face resistance in accepting their voluntary return to Syria, primarily due to their lack of trust in the regime’s security assurances and the absence of a political solution in the country.”

This means that the refugees will be transferred from one hellish situation to another due to the regime’s inability to revitalize the economy, fuel shortages, rising prices, power outages, and the complete collapse of infrastructure resulting from the destruction of cities and towns.

In early July 2023, Ayman Safadi visited Damascus and discussed with Bashar al-Assad the issue of Syrian refugees and efforts to combat drug smuggling from Syria into Jordan.

The Jordanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated at that time that the discussion between Safadi and Assad “focused on the refugee issue and the necessary steps to enable their voluntary return from Jordan.”

Safadi also presented the kingdom’s efforts toward a comprehensive solution to end the Syrian crisis and address its humanitarian, security, and political repercussions both internationally and within the Arab context.

 

Reducing Rations

Humanitarian activists emphasize that any refugee family in Jordan needs 500 Jordanian Dinars (approximately 700 US dollars) monthly to live a dignified life.

In a report published on August 22, 2022, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Amman warned that food insecurity among this group in Jordan is steadily rising.

Around 46% of refugee parents stated that they have reduced their food rations to ensure enough food for their young children on the table.

An increasing number of families are sending their children to collect garbage to earn some money, leading to missed opportunities for education and schooling, as mentioned in the report.

In January 2018, the Jordanian government and UN organizations approved a response plan for Syrian refugees in the kingdom for the years 2018 to 2020, with funding amounting to approximately 7.3 billion dollars, averaging 2.4 billion dollars annually.

The World Food Programme suspended monthly food aid for 21,000 Syrian refugees in July 2021 due to insufficient funding, which compelled the program to prioritize those in most need.

At that time, they highlighted that the current funding was insufficient to meet the food needs of all refugees in Jordan.

The World Food Programme urgently needed $58 million to continue providing monthly food assistance to half a million refugees until the end of 2021.

The World Food Programme’s country director in Jordan, Alberto Correia, stated in a mid-March 2021 video conference that food insecurity among refugees in Jordan is now at its highest since families began arriving from Syria 10 years ago.

According to the World Food Programme’s estimates, one-quarter of refugees throughout Jordan suffer from food insecurity, and 65% are on the verge, a significant increase since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Correia.