1. Water Security and climate change Conference Colonge 18-21 September
Hosting Communities-The challenge with Refugees
Arwa Hamaideh
Uinversity of Jordan

2. Hosting refugees is nothing new for Jordan.
This country of 6 million (as of 2011) 9 million now!
received approximately 2 million Palestinian refugees in the 1940s and 60s, most of whom still live in Jordan,
and more recently hundreds of thousand Iraqi refugees in the 1990s and 2000s.
However, the ongoing influx of Syrians escaping the brutal civil war in their home country is likely to be the most concentrated flow of refugees over time in Jordan’s history.
The most reliable estimates of registered and un-registered Syrian refugees are between 1.4 and 1.8 million as of the end of 2014 (UNHCR 2014; MWI 2013). Water scarcity is also nothing new for Jordan.

3. Since 2011, approximately 600,000 Syrians have crossed the border into Jordan, putting immense strain on already scarce resources, and intensifying competition for basic services.
The vast majority of these refugees do not reside in camps, but in Jordan’s host communities, where limited opportunities, a lack of resources and inadequate living space present a challenge to social cohesion and community resilience

4.  Jordan has received a large influx of refugees posing various challenges at the national and local levels.
the largest impact on the northern governorates which have been hosting the largest number of refugees.
Scarce resources and permitted access of refugees to health and education
services have resulted in a huge burden on the local communities
 A major challenge to the municipalities, is providing adequate support for host communities
. The services, resources, and infrastructure of these municipalities have been strained by the influx of the refugees

5. Despite many efforts to engage in economic stabilization and liberalization, Jordan is facing economic and social challenges as the Syrian refugee influx is draining already limited national resources
· While the problems related to municipal services such as solid waste management, water, sanitation and infrastructure are pre-existing, they have been compounded. Additional municipal needs include energy resources, cash assistance/budget and social services support

7. o Limited availability of water through the water distribution network
· Government services are also impacted by the Syrian refugee influx:
o Limited availability of water through the water distribution network
o Quality of water worsening
o Increased tonnage of solid waste generated that government entities are not able to handle
o Increased pressure, burden, and overcrowding on health and educational services

8. o Inadequate water service due to increased demand
· Water is the second most urgent problem for several reasons:
o Inadequate water service due to increased demand
o Old water distribution network with high loss rates thus less dependence on water distribution network
o Inadequate frequency of water supply(once a week for a few hours), by rotation and by neighborhood
o Deteriorating water purity, salty or muddy in multiple instances
o Increasing purchase of water via water tank trucks which is becoming expensive
o New housing areas are not covered by the old water distribution network and require expansion

9. Water supply is the greatest challenge for the daily operations of the Zaatari Camp, where tankers deliver approximately 1 million gallons/day— amounting to approximately 1.38 million cubic meters/year (MCM/y).
According to UNHCR, the camp had a peak population of 202,993
in April For the one-million-plus refugees outside of camps, consumption is much more difficult to monitor
water and sanitation policies related to refugees in Jordan, operates under the assumption that refugees in cities and towns consume approximately 80 liters per capita per day (l/cap/d) (UNICEF, pers. comm. 2014). In total, Syrians could be consuming as much as 8-15% of Jordan’s annual renewable groundwater resources (Farishta 2014).

10. Food Needs:
Since the Syrian crisis began in 2011, there has been clear upward pressure on the food Consumer Price Index (CPI) in Jordan, especially for items largely produced in domestic markets such as vegetables, dairy, eggs, and meat products and less so for items that are mostly imported like cereals and legumes (UNDP 2013).
The overall food CPI has increased in the range of % between 2011 and However, it should be noted that the prices of production inputs in the agricultural sector have also risen given the disruption of regional supply chains since the Syrian crisis began. So, the net welfare effect of price changes on farmers is unclear. Insofar as they are positive, the results of the above analysis likely represent welfare losses that in this respect as well should be considered upper bounds.

11. The Way Forward:
Developing & rehabilitating wash infrastructure In addition to delivery of life saving basic humanitarian services
While infra-structure interventions represent large initial investments, in the medium to long-term they offer significant cost-effectiveness, value for money, and sustainability for the camp populations, but also for host community populations in Jordan.
More Investment support for water and sanitation

12. Access to education improved: more than 143,000 Syrian refugee boys and girls enrolled in public schools this year, and 50,000 Syrian boys and girls have been provided with remedial education.
Access to Justice has improved: 70,000 Syrian refugees and Jordanians in host communities reached with legal advice and/or information. • Communicable disease control has been strengthened: over 100,000

13. Capacity development to enhance government/sector planning and policy making for better utilization of resources.
Water supply, with two main areas of intervention: water quantity and quality as well as water demand management
(nonrevenue water reduction, water conservation, awareness, etc.) • Safeguarding the operational capacity of utility companies through technical/financial support and improving cost recovery, water loss reduction, and energy efficiency.
Expand and improve sanitation services, sanitation coverage and water reuse. 

14. Thank You