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Social activities are an essential starting point for a successful integration of Syrian refugees in the host community. This project aims to strengthen communication among all parties to help refugees achieve social stability and mitigate the impact of the economic crisis, as well as help members of the host community to accept and support newcomers and their contribution to local development.
Lead Authority or Organization: Municipality of Sahab, Cities and Villages Development Bank, Ministry of Municipal Affairs under the Emergency Services and Social Resilience Project (ESSRP)
Area: Municipality of Sahab, Jordan
Beneficiaries: Members of the local community and Syrian refugees, especially children, women, and people with special needs.
Timeline: January 2015 – December 2015
Human Resources: Municipality staff, non-governmental organizations, volunteers.
Funding Amount: $50,000
Source of Funding: Funding is under the Emergency Services and Social Resilience Project which is funded by a special multi-donor trust fund, and managed by the World Bank.
Following the outbreak of the Syrian crisis in 2011, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan experienced a high influx of Syrian refugees. The Municipality of Sahab recently became an independent municipality, administratively and financially, and this affected its ability to provide services to the local community. With the increasing number of refugees, the provision of basic services has become a burden, as Syrian refugees in 2015 were 30% of the total population in Sahab.
The Municipality of Sahab faces enormous pressure on health, education, and infrastructure services. Moreover, the difference in cultures and customs between the Syrian and the local community make it necessary to strengthen social integration, enhance communication between the two communities, and identify their needs.
The project went through the following steps:
Reported Results
Evidence and Beneficiary Feedback
Activities were defined based on the social needs of targeted groups:
Challenges and Risks
One of the most important challenges is the emergence of new social needs due to the influx of new refugees to the region, along with the difficulty posed by limited funding.
Key Ingredients of Success
In order to foster social cohesion between Syrians and the local community, the Municipality of Sahab will develop an entertainment and social center during the second phase of the project with the aim to increase cohesion between refugees and Jordanians, and integrating new refugees into the community.
This post is part of a series of case-studies published in the CMI 2018 Refugees' Compendium and featuring host communities experiences in hosting refugees with relation to local economic development. The information in-here was provided by focal points in the relevant institutions, NGOs, local governments, etc