Jordan
Please click here to read about our current support to vulnerable Iraqi children in Jordan
Save the Children established the Jordan field office in 1985 with a special focus on children and families. Since then, our programs have contributed to both social and economic development, and have positively impacted the lives of more than one million Jordanian women and children. Our effort to improve health care services and education and create economic opportunities for poor women have been recognized internationally and continue to result in real and lasting change for children and families.
Challenges for Children
The recent influx of Iraqis into Jordan has added to the vulnerability of both Jordanian and Iraqi children and families. Save the Children has been named the Education Focal Point for Iraqis in Jordan by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), and is working with the Royal Court and the Government of Jordan to ensure the protection and well being of these vulnerable children. Additionally, the country is experiencing a "youth-bulge" that is the result of 30 years of growth rates that exceeded 3.4 percent.
Numbers at a Glance
- According to UNHCR, 750,000 Iraqis are estimated to be living in Jordan.
- 60 percent of the population in Jordan is under the age of 24.
- 70 percent of youth who are one year out of school are still unemployed.
- The infant mortality rate is 16.1 deaths for every 1,000 live births.
Our Response:
Emergency Programs
Save the Children seeks to help displaced Iraqi children in Jordan have access to quality education and protection until it is safe for them to return home. We have developed a regional, "life-cycle" strategy addressing the educational needs of children from pre-school to early adulthood, including early childhood development, primary school education and non-formal youth education. This work benefits both Iraqi and Jordanian children.
Youth Development Programs
More than 70 percent of the population in Jordan is under age 30. We engage youth while fostering a culture of hope through positive alternatives, affirmative civic action and civil society efforts:Reaching more than 50,000 Jordanian students age 12–24 each year, INJAZ ("Achievement" in Arabic) seeks to enhance youths' knowledge and awareness of the world of work and build their skills to enter and succeed in the labor market. . www.injaz.org.jo
The NAJAH ("Success" in Arabic) program increases the employability of Jordanian youth ages 18–24 through learning-by-doing approaches, career counseling, support to stay in work and community mobilization designed to enhance parents' support for youth employment and entrepreneurship.
The School-to-Careers initiative increases the Ministry of Education's commitment and capacity to manage and deliver school-based activities that link education to the world of work.
Naseej ("Weaving" in Arabic) is a regional initiative that provides grants to community youth development projects and activities, enables the exchange of experience between and among youth, youth workers and organizations and raises awareness of youth leadership in the region www.naseej-cyd.org.
Siraj ("Lantern" in Arabic) provides Arab youth with inspiring affirmative role models and networks that demonstrate positive and practical ways to contribute to their society and economy.
Early Childhood Education
Save the Children is developing, testing, modifying and using tools and materials that encourage healthy, safe, participatory and appropriate early childhood development and education. These tools include learning through play methodologies in kindergartens and child safety puppet theatre.
Health
In partnership with Johns Hopkins University, Save the Children is a partner in "Our Health, Our Responsibility" a national health awareness program that is changing the way Jordanian families view health care. By taking a community based approach, Save the Children is putting the "public" back into public health and ensuring that individual and family health care is viewed as a series of healthy choices as opposed to reactive cures. Goals of this effort are to improve the health status of Jordanian households and help members make informed choices about their reproductive health.www.sehetna.com
Economic Opportunities
Save the Children introduced the Group Guaranteed Lending Program in Jordan in the mid-1990s with the goal of empowering female entrepreneurs to become income-earners and decision-makers in their households and communities. Ultimately, such empowerment contributes to improving the overall economic status of women and their families. The institute we founded, the Microfund for Women, became independent in 1999 and is a leader in the micro-credit industry in Jordan and the region, achieving full financial sustainability in 2002 and reaching the 25,000-active-loan mark in 2006. Jordan field office director discusses Microfund program
Plans for the Future
Save the Children will strengthen its innovative programs. In education, we will work to meet the needs of the estimated tens of thousands of Iraqi children not currently enrolled in school, increase child participation in early childhood development programs and ensure that all vulnerable children have access to quality, safe, basic education. In health, we will continue to raise awareness among Jordanian youth about healthy sexual and reproductive health practices and promote evidence-based newborn care interventions and approaches that address the main causes of neonatal death. In addition, we seek to motivate large numbers of Jordanian and Arab youth to become positive, active participants in their communities.
