‘80-100 births registered weekly at Zaatari refugee camp’

AMMAN — Around 80-100 births are registered weekly at the Zaatari refugee camp in Mafraq Governorate, according to UN Women.

UN Women Project Field Officer Rawan Majali was quoted by Al Rai Arabic daily as saying that women and children constitute 80 per cent of the Zaatari refugee camp, some 90km northeast of Amman.

Ziad Sheikh, UN Women representative in Jordan, said the Oasis Centre for Resilience and Empowerment of Women and Girls (OCREWG) has proved success in improving the living standards of the Syrian refugee women in the camp.

Sheikh was quoted by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, as pledging the constant support of UN Women to vulnerable Syrian refugee women, adding that the organisation seeks to apply the OCREWG in the local host communities to support vulnerable Jordanian women.

He also said that the UN Women has already opened five OCREWG centres in Amman, Zarqa, Tafileh, Karak and Maan, adding that more Oasis models will be established in other parts of the country, in case they succeed in achieving the desirable outcomes and goals, according to Petra.

Sheikh added that the OCREWG centres will provide job opportunities, training and maternity services to vulnerable women in host communities, according to Petra.

He also said that the activities and services in these centres will take into account the needs and priorities of the most vulnerable Jordanian women in the targeted local communities, and the development needs of their regions, Petra reported.

In 2012, UN Women opened its first Oasis — a centre for refugee women and girls to access emergency aid and specialised gender-based violence services at Zaatari camp.

Over time, the scope and impact of the Oasis model has expanded to encompass multisectoral services that build women’s resilience and empowerment. Currently, UN Women operates four Oasis centres in the Zaatari and Azraq refugee camps.