46% of UNHCR-registered refugees in Jordan are children

Refugee children at the Zaatari camp in Jordan (UN Photo/Sahem Rababah)

By Habib Toumi

AMMAN: Nearly half of the refugees in Jordan registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)are children.

Figures released by the UNHCR show that 693,100 refugees of different nationalities live in Jordan, and that children represent 46.2% of them (320,559).

Adults make up 48.7% (337,595) and the elderly (35,014) make up 5.1% of the refugees.

The UNHCR said that only 18.5% of the refugees in Jordan registered with it live in the designated camps, while 81.5% live in urban areas, mainly in the capital Amman.

Syrians top in the number of refugees with 624,400 (90.1%), while Iraqis number 49,700 (7.2%). Around 18,800 hold other nationalities, including 12,756 Yemenis (1.8%), 4,934 Sudanese (0.7%), and 467 Somalis (0.1%).

Zaatari refugee camp, Jordan (Photo: UNHCR/Brian Sokol)

Serious medical condition tops the refugees’ specific needs (13.5%), ahead of disability (8.3%) child at risk (3.9%) and legal and physical protection needs (3.8%).

The highest number of arrivals was registered in 2013 when 206,642 people sought refuge in Jordan, representing 40.4%of the total number. The second highest figure was in 2016 with 31,073 refugees (6.1%).

According to the UNHCR, 420 individuals left Jordan through resettlement in third countries in July.

The UNHCR also “identified 20 refugees with relevant experience who might be eligible for job opportunities in Canada, where large construction firms are aiming to hire qualified refugees.”

Refugee camps in Jordan (UNHCR)

The transfer value of cash assistance for basic needs in communities was restored to the original amount of $176 per household in average thanks to slightly increased donor funding, the UNHCR said.

The transfer value had been reduced by 25 per cent to $132 per household in average in May due to funding shortfalls.

The UNHCR said that the total recorded contributions for operation in 2024 amounted to $98.3 million.