Jordan

Introduction

Since the start of the Syria crisis in 2011, Jordan has been hosting one of the largest percentages of Syrian refugees in the world. Most live in cities, with others in camps such as Azraq and Zaatari.

Despite the strain of the refugee influx on Jordan’s economy, communities continue to live in relative harmony. However, a prolonged cost-of-living crisis, coupled with reduced funding, regional instability and the economic impact of the war in Gaza, is making life increasingly difficult for refugees and host communities alike. 

The EU is a significant aid contributor, supporting both refugees and vulnerable host communities in Jordan.

What are the needs?

Jordan hosts one of the world’s largest refugee populations per capita. As of June 2025, over 586,600 refugees were registered with the UNHCR in Jordan. The vast majority, 81%, live within communities, while the remaining 19% reside in the Zaatari and Azraq refugee camps. A significant portion of these refugees (more than 90%) are Syrian, with the Jordanian government estimating the total Syrian population in Jordan to be over 1.4 million, including unregistered individuals. Other refugees are from:

• Iraq
• Yemen
• Sudan
• Somalia

66% of all Syrian refugees live below the poverty line. Many, especially those living outside the camps, resort to negative coping strategies to cope with unemployment, illness and difficult living conditions such as:

• debt
• child labour
• reduced food intake

14 years into the Syria crisis, against a background of aid cuts and economic slowdown, most Syrian refugees continue to rely on humanitarian aid to get by. Refugees and other vulnerable populations have been disproportionally affected by the global shocks of the past years, including: 

• the pandemic
• Russia’s war on Ukraine
• the war in Gaza

The decision to close the Emirati Jordanian Camp, one of the largest in the country, by the end of June 2025, resulted in the relocation of almost 1,150 refugees to the already underfunded Azraq camp, while the remaining approximately 4,900 refugees returned to Syria. 

The deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Azraq refugee camp remains of particular concern. Of 111,000 refugees living in Zaatari and Azraq camps, some 67,000 live in Zataari and the rest in Azraq, including about 6,000 in the securitised Village 5. Azraq is disadvantaged when it comes to service provision and livelihood opportunities. The recent relocation of refugees from the Emirati-Jordanian Camp is adding a significant strain to the response and existing capacities of humanitarian actors.

While some Syrian refugees have expressed an interest in returning to Syria since the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024, only around 86,300 refugees have actually returned to-date. 

How are we helping?

With limited prospects of a large-scale return to Syria, to become self-reliant and for returns to be sustainable, refugees need sustainable and durable solutions including:

• protection
• better access to social services
• health care
• economic opportunities 

In the current situation of mounting regional instability, economic pressure and funding shortages, both refugee populations and vulnerable Jordanians are expected to face growing service gaps and heightened protection risks, with an increased strain on national public systems.

Since the beginning of the Syria crisis in 2011, the EU has channeled approximately €4 billion to Jordan through humanitarian, development and macro-financial assistance. Of this total, humanitarian aid amounts to over €444 million.

In 2025, the EU mobilised €12.5 million in humanitarian assistance to support:

• health care
• protection education
• assistance 

We support populations in Zaatari, Azraq and Garden camps, but also Syrian and non-Syrian refugees who live outside the camps. EU-funded essential services also benefit vulnerable Jordanians across the country.

Various programmes address the specific needs of women and children, who make up more than 50% of the refugee population.

The EU supports health interventions focused on immediate lifesaving assistance, especially where refugees and vulnerable Jordanians struggle to access health services. Our assistance focuses on sexual and reproductive health care, also in addition to cash assistance for health.

To address educational needs, EU-funded programmes ensure quality schooling for vulnerable children, including those with disabilities. Innovative approaches are used to help out-of-school children find their way into the formal education system.

Syrian refugees in Jordan without updated documentation are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. The lack of official documents limits their freedom of movement. It prevents them from entering the labour market and accessing essential services, such as health care and education. The EU also supports the UN Refugee Agency and a consortium of partner organisations to help refugees obtain and keep official refugee status, and resolve legal issues.

Mutual commitments exist between the EU and Jordan. They follow pledges made at the London conference in 2016 and the Brussels Conferences on Supporting the future of Syria and the region that have taken place yearly since 2017.

The annual Brussels Conferences have successfully mobilised international financial support for Syrians and their host communities, both inside Syria and in neighbouring countries.

Facts & figures

Over 560,000 registered refugees in Jordan:

• over 511,000 from Syria
• almost 50,000 from other countries
  _{(UNHCR, June 2025)}

EU humanitarian funding:
€12.5 million in 2025
Over €444 million to Syrian refugees and host communities since 2011

_{Last updated: 18/08/2025}