AMMAN, Jordan, 2 October 2020 - As the Syrian crisis enters its ninth year, Jordan remains one of the countries most impacted, hosting the second highest share of refugees per capita globally. As of October 2020, there are 659,653 registered Syrian refugees in Jordan, with 19.2% living in camps, mainly Zaatari and Azraq. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Syrian refugee women of reproductive age have experienced further issues in accessing health care and increased levels of GBV.

In its effort to support UNFPA Jordan in its response to the Syrian refugee crisis, the European Union (EU) Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid has announced a further contribution of EUR2.5 million in humanitarian aid to UNFPA.

With this continued funding from the EU, UNFPA Jordan will continue the provision of essential, life-saving and comprehensive sexual and reproductive health (SRH) and gender-based violence (GBV) services for populations affected by the Syrian refugee crisis in Zaatari Refugee Camp. 

This funding is critical, and also very much appreciated, especially in regards to the COVID-19 response, so that UNFPA can ensure the continuity of access to these critical services, both in-person at the UNFPA Maternity Clinic and Women and Girls Safe Spaces and through a remote service modality.

The EU has been a strategic partner of UNFPA in Jordan since 2013, since the onset of the Syrian crisis response, with a contribution of over EUR 23 million to UNFPA’s SRH and GBV interventions. 

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UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, delivers a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe, and every young person's potential is fulfilled.

 About EU Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid (DG ECHO):

The European Union – Member States and EU institutions collectively – is among the leading donors of humanitarian aid in the world. The European Commission has been providing humanitarian aid since 1992 in over 110 countries, reaching millions of people across the globe each year. Relief assistance is an expression of European solidarity with people in need all around the world. It aims to save lives, prevent and alleviate human suffering, and safeguard the integrity and human dignity of populations affected by natural disasters and man-made crises.