UN’s World Food Programme cuts assistance to Syrian refugees in Jordan

The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) announces that funding shortages have forced it to cut its food assistance for thousands of Syrian refugees living in Jordan.

The UN body said on Thursday that 21,000 Syrian refugees will no longer receive their monthly food assistance as of July amid a prioritization exercise due to a crisis of funds.

Although recent contributions from donors have averted wide-scale cuts affecting a larger number of people, resources still fall well short of meeting the needs of all vulnerable refugees in Jordan, it added.

According to the WFP, it urgently needs 58 million dollars to continue its food aid program until the end of 2021 for the half million refugees it supports.

“Desperate times call for desperate measures. We have to make some difficult choices to stretch the limited resources we have and ensure that we meet the needs of the most vulnerable refugees. These are families who cannot put food on the table without WFP assistance,” said Alberto Correia Mendes, WFP Representative and Country Director in Jordan.

“These are painful choices. What’s more, if we do not receive further contributions, we may find ourselves having to cut food assistance for another quarter of a million refugees living outside the camps by September,” Mendes added.

He noted that the cuts are coming at the worst time due to the increased number of families who are struggling to earn money or have lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a recent WFP survey, some 68 percent of the refugees have seen their income drop since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic.

Refugees in Jordan have been suffering increasing food insecurity in 2020 as two in three refugees are on the verge of food insecurity.

Refugee families consider WFP’s assistance a lifeline. Those who live in Zaatari and Azraq camps and extremely vulnerable families living in local communities receive 32 dollars per person each month.

Vulnerable refugees living outside camps receive monthly assistance of 21 dollars per person.

The UN food agency requires urgent funding to continue providing vulnerable refugees with assistance and to stop families falling into further food insecurity and deeper poverty.

The WFP is working closely with partners including the Jordanian government, donors, UN agencies and NGOs to meet the required funds.

“We are grateful to our donors for their long-standing support to Syrian refugees in Jordan over the last decade. Many of these refugees are now more vulnerable than ever, reeling from the economic impact of COVID-19, which has pushed hundreds of thousands into an ever more desperate situation and increased their humanitarian needs,” Mendes said.

“We count on our donor support more than ever,” he said.

The UN food agency said in May 2020 that a record 9.3 million people were food insecure in Syria.

Millions of Syrians food insecure amid coronavirus pandemic: WFP

The United Nations food agency says a record 9.3 million people are now food insecure in Syria.

The UN program said spiraling prices and the coronavirus pandemic have compounded the damage of the war in Syria.

In November 2020, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad blamed the United States for hampering the return of refugees to Syria.

Assad says US hampering return of Syrian refugees

The Syrian president blames the United States for hampering the return of refugees to Syria.

"Today we continue working persistently for the return of every refugee who wants to return and participate in the restoration of the homeland," Assad said.

Since 2011, more than 5.6 million Syrians have been forced from homes. Many of them have sought refuge in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and Iraq.

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