Leaving Zaatari Refugee Camp after spending an year and 3 months

I have been working on JEN’s assistance activities in Zaatari Camp from September 2013 when this camp was still at its initial stage: two months after it opened up for the Syrian Refugees. And today I’d like to let you know that I will be departing this camp very soon as my term will be coming to an end.

When I reminisce the time when I visited Zaatari Camp for the first time, I remember how the constructions of roads and toilet facilities had just begun. There were several hundred tents dispersed in the middle of the desert. I saw Syrian refugees who evacuated from insecurity with few clothes and belongings, who also had to live in a extremely harsh environment where the desert climate easily rose clouds of dust into the air. I couldn’t even see a couple of meters ahead of me when that happened.

Now I can see that the living environments of the residents have drastically changed. More than 80% of the population lives in caravans instead of tents—roads are paved with asphalt, schools and hospitals are in operation, and there are lively shop streets which stretch 2km that are called “Champs-Élysées” and “Fifth Avenue.” “Champs-Élysées” started out with a couple of vegetable shops and perfume shops (as there was a large demand among the refugees who couldn’t take a bath so often). Now I see butcheries, electronics shops, and Kebab shops. I am amazed at how people have become so independent despite their harsh circumstances.

                  [People selling various products in ”Champs-Élysées”]

At the same time, the socio-economic gap is widening and inequality is everywhere. There are those who possess several caravans and abundant home appliance, and even have built water fountains in the middle of their self-acclaimed property areas. In the meantime, there are a huge amount of people left behind who cannot sustain their livings without the assistance of humanitarian NGOs and UN agencies. Among those people are children and youth 18 and under, whom cover more than half of the population of 120,000. We also need to make sure that the disabled people and women who are heads of their families receive abundant and appropriate support because this vulnerable population tends to have more difficulty accessing services and distributions. This is an urgent issue that needs to be tackled by every humanitarian organization working in Zaatari Camp.

I have so much more to share so for those of you that are interested in further understanding the history, current conditions and future prospective of Zaatari Camp and the Syrian refugees, please attend JEN’s event in which I will be talking not only about the aforementioned topics but also about my thoughts, experiences and JEN’s activities.

Date: November 27, 2013 Time: 7pm Place: JICA Ichigaya Details: Please click the link below.
https://www.jen-npo.org/%3Fp%3D6841

Lastly, I should stress that the Syria Crisis will protract a lot longer than any of us can imagine and no one knows the fate of it. Therefore we need much more support in order to better support the Syrian refugees who have experienced fear, fatigue, depression and hopelessness. It was my honor to be able to work in Zaatari Camp from the start engaging so many Syrian residents along the way. I’d like to express my sincere gratitude to you who have supported us and also would like to ask for a continuous support. Your thoughts and prayers matter a lot.

           [My JEN colleagues who have been supporting me all this long]

Hiroshi Sasaki Program Officer,
Zaatari Refugee Camp JEN Amman

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