The UNHCR has launched a major campaign during the holy month of Ramadan to raise funds to help some of the most vulnerable Syrian refugee families in Jordan. In less than 48 hours, the “LIFELINE” campaign managed to raise $1,600,000, which is 10 percent of its target.
UNHCR’s Representative to Jordan, Andrew Harper, said the campaign aims to raise funds for its cash assistance program, which targets the most vulnerable Syrian families living in Jordan, particularly widows with children, the elderly, orphans, and the sick. He stressed that without this cash aid, many refugees could resort to desperate measures to sustain themselves.
“The cash assistance is our most efficient and effective program to help refugees survive,” he said. “We have helped more than 22,000 families with monthly cash assistance, without which they would have been able to pay rent or bills. But there are nearly 12,000 more families that are still on the waiting list, and we are raising the funds for them.”
In order to ensure that the money goes straight to the refugees, the UNHCR has waived any administrative or overhead charges for running the campaign.
“This means that every dinar, dollar, or riyal donated will go directly to the refugees and only the costs for the bank transfer will be deducted,” Harper explained.
He also thanked MBC for its help in raising the campaign’s profile on “Khawatir,” one of its flagship programs for Ramadan.
“Thanks to “Khawatir” and its host, Ahmad Shuqeiri, we managed to raise USD1,600,000 in less than 48 hours. This means we can now take 1000 Syrian families off the waiting list and provide them with cash aid for a whole year.”
This year, the UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations are facing significant financial difficulties that could affect their aid operations. Although $35 million was pledged by donor countries and organization to help Jordan cope with the refugee crisis this year, only 20 percent of the pledged money was actually delivered to the UNHCR.
“We are witnessing donor fatigue at a time when refugees are becoming more vulnerable. Without the money, we will be unable to deliver life-necessary assistance.” Harper concluded. “Therefore, we call on individuals to step forward and help those in extreme hardship.”
More information on the “lifeline” campaign can be found on:
