Syrian refugees costing Jordan $830m

As Syrian refugees continue to suffer from harsh conditions abroad and especially at the Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan due to the severe weather conditions in the desert area [70 kilometres east of the capital], a study by the Jordanian Economic and Social Council [ESC] has set the financial cost of the influx of Syrian refugees over the past two years at 590m Jordanian dinars [$830m], 3 percent of the kingdom's GDP. According to the study, the cost of hosting one refugee is around 25,000 dinars, paid for by the state. In addition to the costs paid for by the state, there is humanitarian aid allocated to Syrian refugees, to the tune of $200m. The study also revealed a direct impact on the job market in Jordan, with Syrian refugees taking up 38,000 job opportunities: around 40 percent of the total jobs, both direct and otherwise, which are required to be made available to the Jordanian workforce on an annual basis. ESC director, Dr Jawad al-Anani, said looking after the refugees cost the state 450m dinars in 2012 and 140m dinars in 2011. The total cost, he said, is distributed among the various sectors and affects the economy. The damage is reflected in debt and additional imports in addition to the impact on the job market. Meanwhile, Mohammed al-Amoush, the director of the Zaatari refugee camp, has said that 47,000 refugees entered the camp between the start of the current month and Tuesday. This, he said, is the largest figure seen since the commencement of the conflict of Syria. According to al-Amoush, the camp now houses 95,000 refugees, prompting the relevant authorities to carry out expansion works in order to accommodate the large number of refugees coming into the country as violence escalates in Syria. Refugees arrive at a rate of almost 2,500 per day, al-Amoush said. Al-Amoush also described "immediate decisions" taken by humanitarian organisations which he said were working around the clock in order to provide humanitarian services to the refugees who may be in need of immediate assistance or quick intervention by organisations. Al-Amoush also said that all parties involved were careful to ensure the distribution of aid and secure much-needed trailers for the refugees especially in the current weather conditions. In light of the severe weather conditions in the Maraq Province, refugee officials have been taking measures to avert the threat of flooding by erecting sand barriers to ward off the heavy rainwater. Medical sources have reported that a refugee couple in Mafraq [a man 44 and wife 32] contracted the swine flu virus. The man [44] was taken to the Mafraq Hospital and his wife [32] was transferred to a gynecological hospital for treatment. They are both in a stable condition.