Project profile — Promoting Economic Development in Communities Hosting Syrian Refugees

This project aims to enhance the quality of life for Jordanians living in communities hosting Syrian refugees. These communities are facing difficulties to meet their local population’s social and economic needs as the influx of refugees is also straining the communities’ basic services. The project seeks to assist Jordanians through the provision of: (1) case management, information services, and emergency cash assistance to extremely vulnerable Jordanian households; (2) support for the economic development of Jordanians through a financing and lending initiative; and (3) new community programs for youth to improve their vocational skills and opportunities and reinforce positive relationships between the Jordanian and Syrian communities.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased ability of Jordanian host community members to address urgent needs; (2) improved access to livelihood opportunities; and (3) strengthened social structures and local safety nets.

Results achieved as of the end of this project (June 2020) include: (1) 4,614 Jordanian households (of whom are 2,907 women head-of-house and 1,707 men head-of-house), comprising 25,377 individuals, have received Emergency Cash Assistance (ECA) that helped them meet their urgent needs and address protection risks; (2) 1,625 beneficiaries (of whom are 1,177 women) established or further developed an income-generating business using loans facilitated by the project; (3) 30 Community-based organizations (CBOs) increased their capacity to implement more tailored and more responsive micro-finance services to local communities; (4) 776 beneficiaries (of whom are 60% women and 40% men) received vocational education training, creating opportunities for youth who were unable to finish their education due to their poor financial situation; (5) one gender-sensitive photovoltaic systems training curriculum was developed for delivery through the Vocational Training Corporations to ensure the access of women to this field; (6) 51 women acquired vocational skills in Green energy; (7) 48 youth leaders and 62 CBO staff from 12 CBOs received leadership training; (8) conducted eight media campaigns around Gender Based Violence (GBV) and women’s rights; (9) facilitates four youth committees (75% women-led) to help build leadership skills and develop community networks between Syrian refugees and host community members; and (10) 47 social workers (29 women) from the Ministry of Social Development were trained on CARE’s human-rights based case management model. The training focused on ensuring the active involvement of women, girls, boys, the elderly and persons with disabilities in making decisions affecting the entire household.