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EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian crisis

Strict health regulations to ensure workers’ protection in Azraq camp

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The fact that my job resumed helped me bring more things for my family unlike those who lost their jobs or had them suspended

Khaled is a volunteer at World Vision’s ‘Solid Waste Management’ programme, implemented inside Azraq Refugee Camp.

The camp was put in lockdown following the COVID-19 outbreak and it became impossible for residents to go outside of the camp or to circulate freely within the camp. Like many, Khaled had to stop working for a while, because of the health situation, to keep himself and his family safe. However, he was able to resume his work as a volunteer thanks to the implementation of strict health guidelines.

“Due to COVID-19, it has become more difficult to shop for groceries in Azraq Refugee Camp’s main supermarket because it is jam-packed there. We also stayed indoors and my children couldn’t go outside because first there was a lockdown and second we were scared they would catch the virus” he explains.

According to World Vision, there have been five confirmed COVID-19 cases in Azraq during the last weeks and the situation is under control. They could therefore continue their operations of managing the camp’s solid waste while respecting the following COVID-19 regulations.

All workers are provided with hand sanitizers, facemasks, PVC gloves, safety boots and reusable water bottles. In addition to that, strict measures have been implemented to safeguard their safety. Thermometer guns and disinfecting gears are available on site and workers are asked to maintain a safety distance. They are reminded to wash their hands throughout the day and have to call their team leader if they feel unwell so that they can be taken in charge by the medical team on site. The waste from the two blocks is collected separately and transferred to the landfill directly and all involved workers and vehicles are disinfected once back from the landfill.

“The fact that my job resumed helped me bring more things for my family unlike those who lost their jobs or had them suspended” says Khaled.

World Vision is part of a consortium led by GIZ implementing a project in Azraq camp whose objective is to improve living conditions of refugees, by developing a more efficient solid waste management system.

Thanks to the work of the consortium led by GIZ and supported by the EU through the Trust Fund, solid waste management and wastewater treatment has improved exponentially. In light of the COVID-19 crisis, new safety regulations had to be put in place for the work to continue and to protect the health of the workers and project implementers. More than 500,000 vulnerable Jordanians and Syrian refugees benefit from safer and healthier living conditions, as well as access to short-term job opportunities that allow their families to live more decently.