Winterisation assistance covered 90k refugee households — UNHCR

AMMAN — As of January 17, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) had covered $40.84 million, or 11 per cent, of Jordan’s required $356.4 million to meet the needs of refugees.

According to an operational update report shared with The Jordan Times this week, the UNHCR revealed that it has completed its “one-off multipurpose cash winterisation” assistance, covering the needs of 90,000 refugee families comprising around 410,000 individuals. 

The winterisation assistance supported over 70,000 refugee households in urban areas, of which around 15,000 were non-Syrian, also meeting the needs of 20,000 households in the Zaatari and Azraq refugee camps. 

The report showed that in December 2019, 32,215 vulnerable refugee families benefitted from assistance in the form of cash transfer to cover their essential needs, while in the same month, 176,920 work permits were issued for Syrian refugees.

As of January 31, the number of refugees registered by the UNHCR in Jordan stood at 745,673, of whom 83.4 per cent are living outside camps in urban areas, while the rest live in the Zaatari, Azraq and Emirati refugee camps.

The numbers are divided into the following nationalities: 655,216 Syrian refugees, 67,152 Iraqis, 14,795 Yemenis, 6,091 Sudanese, 747 Somali and 1,672 of other nationalities, according to the report. 

In the report, the UNHCR noted that Cabinet amendments “have broadened protection under the Labour Law for both Jordanian and non-Jordanian migrant and refugee workers by tackling informal employment activities,” which often have a negative effect on workers. 

The report also highlights that the grace period waiving fees for Syrian refugee work permits has been extended for the ninth time until end of 2020.