Context
According to data from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than 657,857 refugees from Syria were officially registered in Jordan by January 2025. 81 per cent of the refugees live in host communities, thus placing heavy demands on basic infrastructure. There is a lack of functional public green recreational areas as well as insufficient funds to maintain them.
Objective
Syrian Refugees and vulnerable Jordanians are employed to create green infrastructure in Jordan thus improving their income situation, providing green spaces for community use and social cohesion.
Approach
The project is part of the Special Initiative ‘Displaced Persons and Host Countries’. Female and male cash workers build or rehabilitate green infrastructure using local materials. They create picnic areas in forests or hiking trails in nature reserves to build recreational areas for communities and at the same time preserve nature and ecosystem services. Native drought-resilient trees are planted for reforestation. In this way, the project contributes to the conservation of biodiversity and adaptation to climate change. At the same time, the new public spaces enhance social cohesion.
The project focuses on the needs of women and girls in the public sphere and promotes employment opportunities for them.
5,556 workers will be employed for at least two months in 12 urban and 25 rural areas. Half of the workers are vulnerable Jordanians, while the other half are Syrian refugees – 31 per cent are women. Through the earnings, the financial situation of participants improves. All workers have the opportunity to participate in trainings.
Last update: March 2025