Needs Increase as Iraqi Refugee Crisis Worsens
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As the Iraqi refugee crisis continues to worsen, those who have fled their homes face increasingly desperate situations. At the same time, Global Impact member charities are facing greater difficulties in meeting the refugees’ needs. An estimated 4.4 million Iraqis are now refugees, roughly half remaining in temporary camps in Iraq, with most of the others in Jordan and Syria. Most of those displaced lack access to jobs, schools, essential documentation and healthcare.
Global Impact member charity workers continue to work in both Iraq and Jordan, and are concentrating on the most critical needs: emergency supplies, education, health, food and employment. Despite Danger, Work Continues in Iraq
In early January, the IRC will also distribute “winter kits” to displaced Iraqis in the south. Through a partnership with a local Iraqi organization, the organization will be distributing blankets and mattresses to approximately 6,000 people living in tent settlements and abandoned buildings around Najaf. In Iraq, Mercy Corps has met emergency humanitarian needs for drinking water, blankets, cooking stoves and kerosene. It is working across three Iraqi provinces, aiding an estimated 140,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs). Mercy Corps has also provided more than 170,000 days of employment by funding the construction of wells, sports fields and additions to schools and health centers. The violence of the last year was especially disruptive to education, as lessons were cut short, many teachers fled and schools fell into disrepair with no water or electricity. Illustrating the disruption is the fact that only 28 percent of all Iraqi 17-year-olds took their final exams this past summer. U.S. Fund for UNICEF (UNICEF) has sponsored a school restoration program, through a special Integrated Community-Based Initiative for Children, which hopes to rebuild Iraq’s essential community services. “Every child in school is a victory for Iraqi families,” says UNICEF Iraq Chief of Education, Learning and Development Mette Nordstrand. “With so much uncertainly around them, a well-functioning classroom is their best source of hope.” UNICEF workers are also undertaking the dangerous task of knocking on doors or visiting temporary camps, seeking to immunize children. The organization has provided transport for many vaccination teams and carriers for the vaccine vials. Immediately following confirmation of a cholera outbreak, UNICEF delivered emergency medical supplies and oral rehydration salts to hospitals and began delivery of family water kits, jerry cans, soap, water-purification tablets and chlorine tablets. It also plans to truck in safe water. Charities Increase Aid in Jordan
The International Rescue Committee is partnering with three international organizations—CARE, the Near East Foundation and QuestScope—to implement programs to ensure the most vulnerable get needed assistance. Programs include recruiting and training mobile teams that go door to door, providing families with counseling services, household supplies, cash assistance and referrals to medical and social services. It is also identifying and training established community groups to strengthen local ability to aid Iraqi refugees by extending educational, psychosocial and recreational programs to thousands of Iraqi children and youth not enrolled in schools. Another initiative aims to reduce tension between the overwhelmed host community and Iraqi refugees. Mercy Corps is feeding hundreds of families. During the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, Mercy Corps provided Iftar, the meal following the daily fast, to families in three of the poorest neighborhoods in Amman, where many Iraqis have settled. Save the Children has been named the Education Focal Point for Iraqis in Jordan by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Save the Children has developed a regional “life-cycle” strategy addressing the educational needs of children from preschool to early adulthood, a strategy that will benefit both Iraqi and Jordanian children. The organization is also a partner in “Our Health, Our Responsibility,” a national health awareness program designed to encourage people to view individual and family health care as a series of health choices instead of reactive cures. World Vision is focusing on getting refugee children back in school. The organization is working with four Jordanian organizations to provide informal education, peace-building skills, counseling, food distributions and health care. Through their partners, they are operating day centers and schools where children, including girls, can play, learn and temporarily escape the hardships of their lives. Please donate now to help Global Impact’s member charities continue this vital aid. |
