Many Syrian refugees fled to Jordan in search of safety, abandoning their homes, lands, and everything they held dear to save the lives of those they cared about. After their arrival, all of them including children, women, and elderly, were confronted with the reality of learning how to survive in a foreign land. Jordan was and is much more expensive than Syria, and without jobs to pay the rent, many people have had to flee the expense of cities to live on open land, constructing tents out of sheets, torn blankets, and plastic covers. These flimsy shelters are all they have to protect themselves from the boiling heat of summers and the freezing cold of the winters.  Fatime, her husband, and their six children live in a small tent built next to other tents, forming a small community of relatives and neighbors who fled Syria together in 2012. They live next to the highway, barely noticed by those driving by as the sight of tents has become normal at a time when such communities are spreading throughout Jordan to the point that they can be seen on nearly every highway. Fatima describes her life as if she's trapped in a nightmare she can't escape; for years now, her husband has struggled to find work and they are forced to survive on the absolute minimum with few necessities at their disposal. She worries about the future of her children. "In Syria, we used to have a house full of life and comfort; now we have nothing, own nothing, and are barely surviving; this life should not be lived by any human being. All I care about is my children; I want them to have a better life. Feeding them is a constant battle, warming them is a struggle, and it breaks my heart that I have nothing to offer." Fatima said. The World Food Programme (WFP) provides monthly assistance to Fatima and her family, with each person receiving 23JOD per month. With no other source of income, the assistance is a lifeline for the family. "We live on assistance. We buy only the necessities. We can't afford fruit and meat. Food prices are rising and we owe more and more money each month. " Fatima said.                       Fatima's neighbor, Ahmad, is a father of five who fled Syria after his house was bombed. Before the war, he worked in sheep trading, and his wife used to make dairy products and sell them to neighbors to boost the family's income. Ahmad leaves his family on a seasonal basis to seek work in agricultural lands in order to support his family and relatives who live in the same community as him. "I am in constant fear when I leave my children and wife behind; the danger of something going wrong is so high that anything can go wrong; we use exposed electricity cables to charge our phones and light the tent at night; on rainy days, my children could be electrocuted as water leaks inside the tent. Our relatives died last year when they used a fire pit for heating, and their tent caught fire and burned them alive." Ahmad said.                         "Life in a tent is not a life." This quote was said by so many people living in these shelters surrounded by snow and cold. Karema is another of Fatime's neighbors. She talked about how her brother's child, Abdulla, had sneaked out to play in the snow but returned a few minutes later, soaking wet and cold, barely feeling the heat from the fire. He leaned against the fire pit stove, which was used to heat their tent with branches collected from nearby trees, leaving pieces of his burnt skin on the stove. "What we're going through isn't right, neither for us nor for the children. The international community must come together to help us and recognize our existence. Life has brought us here, and there is nowhere else for us to go. We need all the help and support we can get to help us survive" Karema stated. The food security situation of refugees in Jordan remains alarming. More than 80% of refugee families living in communities are either food insecure or at risk of becoming so. In light of the ongoing impact of the pandemic on the socio-economic situation of refugees, most families are still heavily dependent on WFP assistance. They continue to rely on negative coping strategies such as restricting adult consumption so that children can eat more; eating less; early marriage; and taking degrading or illegal jobs due to the sheer lack of job opportunities. Thanks to generous contributions from Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, KSA, Luxembourg, Norway, RoK, UAE, UK, and USA, WFP has been able to provide monthly food assistance during 2021 to around 465,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan, helping them get through this harsh winter.  

Close to becoming a qualified pharmacist before fleeing the conflict, Huthaifa is among those slipping into poverty as the odd jobs he and other refugees in Jordan rely on dry up. Huthaifa, 31, sighs as he lists all the jobs he has worked in since arriving in Jordan as a refugee from Syria eight years ago. “Construction, tiling, demolitions, painting, a mobile phone shop, the vegetable market,” he says. The only common thread is that all are a far cry from his preferred career: pharmacy. But after years of frustration at not being able to find work in his chosen field, he now faces a far bigger problem. Soaring unemployment and the economic turmoil caused by COVID-19 have made finding any kind of steady work a challenge for many refugees and Jordanians alike, and Huthaifa is among those sliding into debt and struggling to support his family. Back in Syria, he was on his way to becoming a qualified pharmacist, having already overcome challenges including dropping out of school early to support his family. It had been getting a job aged 18 at a pharmacy in Homs run by a family friend that had transformed his fortunes and led him to set his heart on the profession. “For four years I worked in the pharmacy as an assistant. I learned the names of all the medicines, developed relationships with the customers, and developed a love for this specialty. Finally, I saved enough money to go to university,” Huthaifa says. During the first two years of his pharmaceutical sciences degree, he continued to work evening shifts at the pharmacy after studying during the day. But his dreams of becoming a qualified pharmacist were dashed by the outbreak of conflict, putting an end to his work and studies and eventually forcing him to flee to Jordan in 2014, following his older brother who had left the previous month. “The whole neighborhood was destroyed. There was nothing left for us in Syria.” After finding an apartment in Zarqa – a sprawling city northeast of the capital Amman – Huthaifa began to look for work. “I went to the local pharmacy to see if they had any openings, but they requested a degree certificate. Even with six years of experience all they wanted was the certificate. But I had never graduated.” Frustrated, Huthaifa resigned himself to working on construction sites like his brother and other friends who had fled Syria. Although he had no experience, he learned the trade “brick by brick” and developed a network of contacts who would call him when they needed extra hands. “I felt my experience was being wasted, but there was nothing I could do,” he says. Now married and with a fourth child on the way, Huthaifa’s financial situation has recently become dramatically worse, and in the past two months, he has fou nd only four days’ work. “Now every morning I go down to the market street and walk shop to shop to ask if there is any work or if anyone has jobs that need doing. The answer is always the same: ‘maybe tomorrow’,” he explains. With the majority of refugees in Jordan relying on income from daily work, the current outlook is bleak. While more than half of those living outside camps have some form of employment, whether formal or informal, the income many receive is not enough to prevent them from slipping into poverty. A recent assessment found that 64 percent of refugees in the country now live on less than 3 Jordanian dinars (US$4.2) a day. The worrying trend underlines the need for continued support to the 675,000 registered Syrian refugees in Jordan and 5.7 million in the wider region, as well as the countries and communities hosting them. Supporting sustainable and inclusive economies that allow refugees and their hosts to thrive will be one of the challenges facing international donors at a conference on the future of Syria and the region on 10 May in Brussels. For Huthaifa, who until now has relied on working hard and learning new skills to overcome the odds, his situation is becoming desperate. “I haven’t paid my rent for four months. I haven’t paid the water and electricity bills for a year and a half since we moved into this house. We survive by the grace of God,” he says. Forced to sell the food coupons the family receives to try to keep up with overdue rent, Huthaifa regularly buys food on credit at the local supermarket, and with his debts piling up he feels embarrassed to leave his house for fear of judgment. “Often, we only cook twice a week. Other than that, we rely on scraps of food left over in the fridge. On the difficult days, I have to send my children to my brother’s or neighbor’s house to eat.” Having run out of options, all he can do is continue the daily cycle of searching for work. His dream of becoming a pharmacist feels further away than ever, and the best Huthaifa can hope for now is a steady wage. With little prospect to return to Syria – Huthaifa believes it is not yet safe – he says he dreams of a stable job in Jordan. “All I wish is to be paid regularly, on time and with an income that I deserve.”

“When wars begin, so does the terror and devastation of sexual violence. The bodies of women, girls, men and boys become battlefields. Rape is used as a weapon of war just as surely as the bomb that blows up a building or the tank that ploughs through a crowd.” said Dr. Natalia Kanem, UNFPA Executive Director on the occasion of  International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict. The consequences of sexual violence are many. It brutalizes bodies, scars minds, and even kills. It silences and shames survivors, sowing fear and insecurity. It leaves a destructive legacy through prolonged disability, sexually transmitted infections, lost wages, health-care costs, and stigma that attaches not only to survivors and victims, but to their families as well. Ever since the beginning of the Syrian crisis, many refugees who were survivors of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) have fled to Jordan looking for a chance to rebuild their lives. Many of them were haunted by the memories of the sexual violence and exploitation they experiences during captivity. Thanks to the safe spaces supported by UNFPA Jordan in refugee camps and host communities, survivors were able to find safety, heal and reclaim their dignity and lives. UNFPA has been working for the past years with the generous support of the UN Action Conflict-Related Sexual Violence Multi-Partner Trust Fund, and together with UNHCR and other partners to ensure survivors of CRSV are accessing and being provided with the needed services through well-trained case managers.  Women and girls are often considered to be more vulnerable to sexual violence than men due to social norms and gender inequality. However, it has been emphasized that men and boys can be subjected to different forms of violence and sexual abuse. Various forms of conflict-related sexual violence against men may refer to castration, sterilization, rape and forced masturbation of oneself and others. Men and boys may also be forced to perform sexual acts against other people or to witness sexual violence against others. On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Sexual Violence in Conflict, UNFPA Jordan is sharing the stories of two survivors who were subjected to sexual violence during the period of war in Syria. Their fates and the lives of their families were forever changed by the services provided at UNFPA safe spaces.   In the words of Salma I lived the worst days of my life in detention. I was subjected to the worst forms of abuse, humiliation, and sexual violence, and I lived the most difficult and breathtaking moments. I wished for death many times, I wished to close my eyes forever, I wished to erase from my memory all the painful and disturbing memories. Why me?" What did I do?" said Salma. Illustration by Rawan, a 24 year-old young woman from Syria at the Women and Girls Safe Spaces in Zaatari Camp.   The story of Salma* - a 37-year-old Syrian woman - began when she was arrested during the war in Syria. Her story is that of hundreds of women and girls who have been subjected to all forms of violence, humiliation and exploitation as a result of the war. I lived the worst days of my life in detention. I was subjected to the worst forms of abuse, humiliation, and sexual violence, and I lived the most difficult and breathtaking moments. I wished for death many times, I wished to close my eyes forever, I wished to erase from my memory all the painful and disturbing memories. Why me?" What did I do?" said to the case manager at the Institute for Family Health (IFH) - one of the UNFPA Jordan’s supported implementing partners - in the Zaatari camp in Jordan. For nearly a year, Salma had been subjected to different forms of sexual violence and exploitation while in detention. In 2013, she was able to flee with her three children to Jordan, but the events of the detention continued to haunt her every day and night. To this day, Salma still lives with fear and uncertainty. "The experience of sexual violence destroyed me and made me weaker. I was tired of self-blame and flogging. I became surrounded by memories that exhausted and tired me, nightmares and dreams that prevented me from enjoying my life even after my release from prison, and this experience is still present in front of my eyes." expressed Salma. Like many other refugee women, Salma faced difficulty in adjusting to the camp’s environment. She was forced to marry a man who mistreated her. She said: "I couldn’t take it anymore. I hated my life and hated men. I only married him because my family forced me to! When we are in a closed room, all the memories from the detention return. I feel afraid, but where can I escape?… I did  not want this life anymore.” Salma lived in constant fear, anxiety, despair, mistrust of herself and others, recurring physical pain, and disturbances in her sleep and appetite. She also isolated herself from everyone she cared about, as negative thoughts gradually chipped away at her soul. Through the outreach team of the Institute for Family Health (IFH) in Zaatari camp - supported by UNFPA, Salma was introduced to the services provided at the Women and Girls Safe Spaces operated by IFH. She said: “When I arrived at the safe space, I felt that everything will change, and indeed that is what happened!" Salma was attended by a case manager in the center, and this was the first time she spoke about the incidents that had occurred during the previous years. She was provided with case management services to identify her needs, such as psychosocial support. She was also referred to the Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) service provided by the Jordanian Health Aid Society (JHAS) which is supported also by UNFPA, and she received cash assistance to secure her basic needs and participated in recreational activities which helped her recover some hope. After a year of continuous follow up, Salma’s mental and psychological health began to improve. She was no longer hostage to her past which had tormented her for years.  
Today, Salma is independent, empowered and able to achieve and give back to her community: "I did not expect that one day I would reach where I am now! I thought that no one could help me or even get me out of the nightmare I was in. But after the healing trip with the case manager in the safe space, I was able to turn the page and start over. Today I am empowered, strong, working, taking care of myself, my family and those around me."
“In the words of Maher” "I did not expect to get out of the detention alive. I lived there the worst days of my life. I was subjected to various types of torture, the most severe of which was sexual violence, which harmed me and affected how I saw myself, affected my relationship with my wife and children and everyone around me..." he declared.  Maher* is a 30-year old Syrian man, who was detained in a military detention center in his country of origin - Syria. Although he managed to get out, and flee to Jordan with his wife and four children in 2013, he was reliving the trauma of his time in detention every day.     Today Maher lives with his family in the Zaatari camp. Since entering the camp, Maher has had difficulty adjusting to the refugee situation and the camp environment. He is no longer the person he was before entering the detention. He said: “These thoughts and memories broke me and my home. I was no longer able to take care of my children and my wife, nor meet their needs. I was no longer able to work and communicate with others. Suddenly a new situation was imposed on me. I lost hope in everything, I didn't want my life anymore, I was eager to delete all these memories!"  Through the outreach efforts conducted by the outreach team at IFH in Zaatari camp, which is supported by UNFPA, Maher was introduced to the services provided in the community center. It was the beginning of his journey to healing. At the community center, Maher benefited from the psychosocial support sessions. He was able to open up and share his experiences with a counselor when he was reassured that the services he received were confidential. He participated in awareness-raising sessions, and he was referred to the medical services provided at the Saudi Hospital in the camp. "I am back to the strong and passionate person I used to be! All my dark memories suddenly stopped controlling me. I have a strong desire to help others to create change, I found myself after I lost it," said Maher. Today, Maher is a volunteer at IFH and one of the active members of the team leading the male engagement program. He is passionate about educating men and boys about the available protection services for male survivors of violence, and he plays a crucial role in assisting in their referral. "These services improved my life. Now it's my turn to ensure that men and boys know that there are services that help them overcome the incidents that they may have been exposed to" Maher is also an active member of the community committees inside the camp. He implements awareness-raising sessions for men and boys about GBV, gender equality, child marriage and more. *The names of survivors were changed for protection and confidentiality reasons.  

Refugee UN Volunteers are contributing to the development and wellbeing of their own and host communities in Jordan. In this piece, we underline how volunteering can serve as an enabler for refugees, by engaging them as agents of change while creating livelihood opportunities for them. Following the adoption of the Global Compact on Refugees by the UN General Assembly in 2018, and in partnership with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), UNV launched a special initiative to facilitate the deployment of people of concern with UNHCR as Refugee UN Volunteers. This enables them to engage in an income generating opportunity which also assists them in building on their competencies and skills. Since August 2021, UNHCR has deployed 12 Refugee UN Volunteers in Jordan, including 10 medical doctors serving in support of Jordan’s COVID-19 response. The other two serve as Refugee Electrical Assistants in Za’atari and Azraq refugee camps. Commenting on the results achieved through the deployment of Refugee UN Volunteers in Jordan, UNHCR Representative Dominik Bartsch emphasizes the utility of this UNV-UNHCR special initiative in engaging refugees as agents of change. Refugee UN Volunteer Eyad Al-Masri (34) has 16 years of experience in the field of electricity networks. He was deployed as an electrical assistant in Za’atari camp, which hosts almost 81,000 Syrian refugees, in September 2021. "This assignment enabled me to do some good for people forced to flee their homes, including myself. It also allowed me to gain invaluable experience. This enhanced my self-confidence and my sense of belonging to the community," said Eyad Al-Masri, Refugee UN Volunteer Electrical Assistant, UNHCR Jordan. For Eyad, helping ensure the provision of electricity to the camps’ inhabitants emphasizes the value of his work, which entails monitoring and maintaining the electricity network in the camp. In addition, he is engaged in raising community awareness on issues related to safety and saving energy. Souzan Mansour (32) and Abdulrazzak Al-Darkashli (64) are both part of the team of the Refugee Medical Doctors deployed by UNHCR in support of COVID-19 Response in Jordan, under an agreement with the Ministry of Health. Souzan was deployed as a General Practitioner within the Emergency department at Princess Basma hospital in Irbid, the same facility in which she spent one year training after graduating from the university in 2019. For her, this assignment has been namely useful to gain experience in communicating with the patients. “It also allowed me to give back to the country which welcomed me and my family with hospitality,” she explains. "Volunteering made me feel safer and further polished my personality. It broadened my knowledge and experience. I hope I can keep giving by engaging in more opportunities to serve my community," said Souzan Mansour, Refugee Medical Doctor, UNHCR Jordan. Meanwhile, Abdulrazzak joined the COVID-19 vaccination team at Al-Bashir hospital in Amman as a General Practitioner. There, he was assigned to monitor and treat side effects among the vaccine recipients, namely those who show allergic reactions or have underlying conditions. When a few people developed such adverse reactions, his role was to respond quickly through the proper protocol to ensure their safety and wellbeing. "Having spent a while off-service, this assignment helped me regain my self-confidence. Being able to put my skills and expertise in the service of others once again is namely very rewarding," Abdulrazzak shares. UNHCR Representative Dominik Bartsch is highly appreciative of the partnership and this UNV-UNHCR special initiative. "This is an enormous untapped potential in terms of opportunities, not just for UNHCR operations, but really for the entire UN family. Refugee UN Volunteers can be deployed in many different programmes and I really do see great potential for this facility," said Dominik Bartsch, UNHCR Representative in Jordan.