Project profile — Supporting Gender Mainstreaming in Government of Jordan's Systems

Having been the subject of a $3 million increase and a four-year extension, this project builds the resilience of vulnerable women, including refugees, through three complementary pillars and working alongside the Government of Jordan. Project activities include: (1) providing livelihoods opportunities such as cash-for-work that graduates into sustainable employment opportunities, including job placements, entrepreneurship opportunities, or work permit applications; (2) providing education opportunities based on labour market needs, including leadership and civic engagement skills development; and (3) contributing to gender-based violence prevention, protection and awareness-raising services. The 22 Oasis Centres across Jordan, which have evolved into multi-sectoral service delivery, support vulnerable women in camps and host communities. They focus on resilience and empowerment for women and girls while also engaging men and boys in dialogue and mobilization for gender and social equality.

The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased gender-responsive and inclusive refugee response planning and programming in Jordan; (2) increased livelihood and economic opportunities for women in refugee camps and host communities; (3) increased access to protection mechanisms for women in refugee camps and host communities, including those that prevent and address Gender-Based Violence; and (4) increased leadership and participation of vulnerable women in community mobilization, decision-making and social cohesion.

Results achieved as of December 2022 include: (1) scaled up and opened five new Oasis Centres. This increased the number of centres to 22, with 18 in host communities nationwide, three in Za’atari camp, and one in Azraq camp. The expansion helped increase the number of beneficiaries, reaching more than 30,000 vulnerable Jordanian and refugee beneficiaries in camp and non-camp settings; (2) increased the access of 3,599 vulnerable Jordanian, Palestinian, Sudanese, Syrian, and Yemeni refugee women to Oasis Centers. This provides them access to comprehensive protection services, and skills development and livelihood support. These centers also act as safe spaces for women, with 1,962 women accessing protection assistance such as psychosocial support, legal advice, and referrals; (3) 326 Jordanian and Syrian women received micro-entrepreneurship training. 267 participants (23% Syrian and 77% Jordanian) started their business projects, and 22 Jordanian women received job placements. Also, 70% of women who graduated from the training reported that they started their projects, with 89% confirming that they can generate an income; and (4) 91 participants (62 women and 29 men) from Governments, United Nations agencies, non-governmental organizations, and civil society enhanced their knowledge on how to carry out a gender-sensitive needs analysis, and mainstream gender in humanitarian cluster strategies, activities, and indicators.