Easing the burden for host communities
The conflict in Syria is now in its fourth year, and has already claimed more than 190,000 lives — at least 10,000 confirmed to be children. It has forced approximately nine million people to flee their homes and almost three million to take refuge in neighbouring countries. This heavy flow of people has also affected the families living in host communities. Already stretched families struggle to make ends meet as competition for food and housing increases and prices skyrocket.
By Elias Abu Ata, Syria Crisis Response Communications Officer, Jordan
Khadeeja, 30, is a mother of four. Together with her husband, who works as a blacksmith, she has four children under six years old and another baby on the way. The family lives in Zarqa, Jordan, in a community that had a high rate of poverty even before the crisis started in neighbouring Syria.
When the crisis started in Syria and the influx of refugees followed, rent quickly tripled and became too expensive for the already-vulnerable family. They were forced to move into a house that belongs to Khadeeja’s father-in-law, where they all live in a single room and pay almost the same rent that they used to pay for their previous house. It is difficult for all six (soon-to-be seven) of them to live in one room, but this was the only place they could afford. However, finding a home is not even Khadeeja’s main worry. Instead she constantly frets about being able to feed her son and daughters; she often has to barter or sell belongings to buy food from the market.
"World Vision did so much for us,” says Khadeeja. “They visited us and examined the house, without us asking for help. They told us that our situation needed to be improved, and registered us in their programme."
Khadeeja's sole room does not have running water or a proper kitchen, and the family used to share a single toilet with all of their neighbours. To cope, she would collect water in bottles for the room and cook at her parent's house and bring food back. World Vision provided aid supplies to the family and installed basic water and sanitation facilities in their home, including a new kitchen, helping them stay healthy, clean and maintain a sense of dignity until their financial situation improves.
“Some of the most important goods given to us in winter were the mattresses, the gas heater and gas tanks,” says Khadeeja. “We were also given cash that we used to help take care of my daughter instead of exchanging gas tanks to get diapers and milk. We were provided with hygiene kits, water bottles and a water tank.”
The family also attended World Vision’s hygiene promotion classes. Hygiene promotion is especially important during emergencies and refugee crisis, when people’s easy access to toilets and clean water has been compromised. Like in the case of Khadeeja’s family, host communities often suffer as well as refugees.
"We did not have a bathroom before,” remembers Khadeeja. “But, with World Vision's help, I can bathe my children now,” she adds.
World Vision’s household water and sanitation and winterisation project is funded by ECHO. The project served 11,815 individuals from 2,007 households; 7,550 people were Jordanians and 4,265 were Syrians living in the host communities.
In northern Iraq, World Vision is setting up plans to help families displaced by recent conflict, and has distributed clothing, hygiene items, children’s and babies’ items. World Vision UK’s annual Night of Hope campaign will be launching on 6 October, and focuses on remembering the plight of Syrian children living as refugees in Lebanon and Jordan.