Jordan

Jordan’s political stability and central location in the Middle East have long made the country a haven for refugees. Since the mid-twentieth century, Jordan has sheltered thousands of people from Iraq, Sudan, Yemen, the Palestinian Territories, Somalia, Ethiopia and other fragile settings.

Since the outbreak of the Syrian conflict in 2011, an estimated 650,000 registered Syrian refugees have fled across Jordan’s northern border in search of safety. These highly vulnerable families have relied on assistance from organizations like Relief International to meet their daily and longer-term needs over the past nine years. As a resolution to the Syrian crisis grows increasingly elusive, the delicate relationship between Jordan’s burgeoning refugee population and vulnerable host communities is approaching a tipping point.

Relief International launched our Jordan program in 2004 to provide life-saving assistance during the mass exodus of Iraqi refugees, as well as marginalized Jordanian and Palestinian communities in resource-poor areas.

Today, Relief International’s programs focus exclusively on education in Jordan’s Azraq and Za’atari refugee camps. We operate six centers, three in each camp, where approximately 250 staff provide educational courses in reading, language, science, writing and math to thousands of Syrian adolescents and young adults. These classes mirror the subjects taught in Jordanian schools, aiming to improve academic performance for Syrian students who are following a different curriculum than they used in Syria. Given the daily obstacles of living in the camps, our education programs are vital to the success of many students.

Relief International teams work closely with youth refugees to develop solutions to pressing social issues that exist within both camps, including early marriage, unemployment and uncertainty about the future. We’ve launched education programs that provide onsite childcare, ensuring opportunities exist for young mothers and female-headed households to continue growing their skills and knowledge. We also work to provide integrated learning pathways for students who have been out of school for months or even years.

Our centers are largely run by Syrian refugees who serve as guards, student counselors, librarians and teachers – all working side-by-side to educate the next generation of engineers, doctors and lawyers to rebuild Syria after the war, while also earning a living to support their families inside the camps.

“Education is a lifeline for Syrian refugees in both camps,” shares Relief International’s Camps Program Manager Wasef Abdulhadi. “It has the incredible power to transform students’ outlook on life. Education offers our students a new sense of hope.”