Jordan Response Plan for the Syrian Crisis 2020 - 2022.

This new Jordan Response Plan (JRP) is a nationwide multi-sectoral document on humanitarian crisis response aiming to address the needs of Syrian refugees and vulnerable Jordanians impacted by the Syria crisis. Based on the five previous ones, it is a 3-year plan, where needs and proposed response are developed through the task forces composed of line ministries, donors' community, UN agencies, and NGOs. The overall goal of the Plan will be achieved through the following strategic objectives (i) strengthen program design and implementation to be more relevant to the needs, to reach the most vulnerable, and contribute to the enhancement of the resilience of both beneficiaries and systems; (ii) ensure meeting the protection needs of Syrian refugees and meeting the needs of vulnerable Jordanians impacted by Syria crisis; (iii) support national systems to continue providing quality services; (iv) upscale critical capacities of the central, regional and local authorities to plan, program, coordinate and implement the development response; (v) support the government budget to cope with the financial burdens resulting from Syria crisis; (vi) advance more cost effective and sustainable solutions to municipal services and infrastructure in areas critically affected by demographic stress, including solid waste management, housing, and energy sectors; and (vii) mitigate the impact resulting from the consumption and pressures on natural resources and eco system services. Due to the decrease in funding, the Government of Jordan and the International Community started considering changes for JRP 2020-2022, so that a more flexible, resilient, and responsive structure was created. The Plan comprises 7 sectors (instead of the previous 12). The sectors are (i) Public Services; (ii) Education; (iii) Health; (iv) Economic Empowerment; (v) Social Protection and Justice; (vi) Shelter; and (vii) WASH.
To help eliminate hunger and malnutrition, the JRP addresses sectors like agriculture, agriculture value chains, and livestock amongst others. It also proposes to (i) continue food assistance to the most vulnerable refugees inside and outside camps while promoting assistance programs based on Food Security Index; (ii) promote linkages between productive assets and sustainable livelihoods; (iii) guarantee access to quality food for vulnerable women, girls, boys and men affected by the Syria crisis through the distribution of food assistance (both cash and in-kind); and (iv) enhance efficient and sustainable use of agricultural resources.
More sustainable and productive agriculture shall be reached through the promotion of (i) climate-smart agricultural technologies and practices; (ii) green infrastructure projects, sustainable agriculture development projects, manufacturing of plant and animal waste, agriculture labor, and working with agriculture cooperatives.
Rural poverty shall be reduced by supporting and expanding the capacity of households and communities in urban and rural areas to establish family farming activities to improve dietary diversity and enhance food security with special attention to women-headed households.
To enhance more inclusive and efficient agricultural and food systems the Plan suggests improving the efficiency of the value chain of agricultural products and food commodities (i.e. promote quality of food products).
To increase the resilience of livelihoods to disasters, the JRP aims at intervening mainly in the following sectors (i) waste; (ii) water; (iii) environment; (iv) energy; and (v) health. In the waste sector it is necessary improve (i) waste collection and planning, according to targets and indicators in the Sustainable Development Goals Agenda 2030, to alleviate the pressure incurred on the sector from the additional waste generation; (ii) both national and local capacities to manage hazardous waste (in particular, medical waste) enhancing the treatment capacities at source and at landfills. Main interventions in the water sector will aim to (i) reduce water losses and improve water quality through repair and upgrade of water networks, rehabilitation of treatment plants and boosting stations; (ii) improve access to sufficient and sustainable water supply through the equipment and development of existing boreholes; (iii) improve water and sanitation facilities and utilities of households, public schools and health centers; (iv) improve the efficiency of factories, wastewater treatment plants; (v) unblock and upgrade sewer lines to prevent and reduce the risk of sewage overflow in households or surrounding environment; (vi) ensure the quality of treated wastewater through the rehabilitation and repair of existing wastewater treatment plants and pumping station. The response for the environmental sector aims at strengthening the resilience of fragile ecosystems and communities, as well as offsetting the adverse environmental impact posed by the Syria crisis through (i) interventions to conduct restoration and rehabilitation for key habitats and ecosystems that have experienced considerable damage and deterioration; (ii) strengthening monitoring and mitigation of air pollution management. For the energy improvement, the need is (i) promote renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies and solutions to support the increased energy needs; and (ii) enable refugees and host communities to access adequate, affordable and secure energy services. It is finally necessary to improve the health status of Jordanian host communities and Syrian refugees by meeting humanitarian health needs, promoting resilience, and strengthening the national health system and services.