by Abeer Numan | Apr 15, 2013 | JORDAN TIMES

AMMAN — As the Syrian crisis enters its third year, Jordan and other refugee-hosting countries must come up with “innovative solutions” to reduce the exodus of Syrian refugees, said Davide Terzi, Jordan’s Chief of Mission of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

In a recent interview with The Jordan Times, Terzi said: “What should be negotiated with the Syrian regime is the creation of humanitarian spaces in Syria, along its borders, where commodities from neighbouring countries could be sent to, in order to reduce the expatriation of Syrian nationals.”

“We must ensure they are called humanitarian spaces or corridors — buffer zones have militaristic connotations,” Terzi added, noting that there is a significant need for greater humanitarian aid in Syria at present.

“In the past, Syrians were fleeing out of their country for security reasons, but now they are fleeing their country in search of assistance, in the absence of basic services and because of the shortage of staples there, including bread, gasoline, medicines, education and healthcare,” he said.

Terzi said that one way of reducing this problem is to ensure that Syrians living in their country are provided with sufficient aid to improve their quality of life.

“Humanitarian agencies are not on top of things. It is not like we are able to plan, stockpile and manage assistance,” he added, blaming all parties involved in the armed conflict in Syria for the deteriorating humanitarian conditions of the displaced Syrians inside and outside the country.

“Humanitarian agencies and host countries are doing their very best, but we always seem to be overtaken by events and never manage to scientifically plan the response to the crisis and manage the assistance given to Syrian refugees,” Terzi added.

Humanitarian aid and funds are quickly drying up and the resources of the host communities, such as Jordan, are exhausted, he elaborated.

“However, we have received solid humanitarian support from the US, the UK, the Emirates, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, Japan, Cyprus, Chile and Italy,”Terzi added.

Burdens on the Zaatari camp, based in Mafraq, around 90km north of Amman, have necessitated the creation of new camps in the Kingdom.

Jordan has sent 100 refugees to the UAE-Jordanian Hallabat Camp for Syrian refugees, situated in the Zarqa Governorate, which was unofficially opened last week. Sending a small number of refugees to the camp will enable the camp’s managers and partners to test the camp’s services, first, and only then bring it to full capacity, thus ensuring the best possible services are offered to its residents, he said.

The Zaatari camp was set up to accommodate 25,000 Syrian refugees but has been forced to house some 250,000, due to the continued flow of Syrians, according to the IOM official.

In close collaboration with the Jordan Armed Forces, Terzi said that the IOM has transferred 250,000 Syrians from the borders to the Mafraq area, where the they are screened by the authorities and then taken to the Zaatari camp.

In light of the acute need for more space, discipline and control within the camps, refugees are going to be transferred to the Reba’a Al Sarhan camp, instead of Zaatari. This will happen as soon as the new site, which has been refurbished by the UAE government, is ready. Around seven km away from the Jaber border crossing, government officials will be able to distribute refugees among the three available camps.

These include the Zaatari camp, the Azraq camp and the recently opened camp in Mreijeb Al Fhoud, some 80 km northeast of Amman, he concluded.