Cash assistance enables refugees in Jordan to preserve dignity and meet essential needs

For many refugee families in Jordan even small daily decisions, such as what to cook and how to keep the gas stove running, are difficult to make due to constant financial strains. With limited livelihood opportunities, particularly in camps, refugees struggle to provide for children and elderly family members.

To help the most vulnerable families, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, with support from donors such as the European Union, provides cash assistance enabling refugees to cover their most urgent needs and maintain a sense of dignity through choice.

Among refugees receiving UNHCR’s cash assistance are single mothers like Amal Al Awad, 46, a widow and mother of four, living in Zaatari camp. Amal fled Syria with her children in 2013 and has been raising them alone ever since. Finding work is particularly difficult for women heading households due to their caregiving responsibilities. In Amal’s case, the situation is further compounded by health issues that limit her ability to work, therefore cash assistance is her only source of income.

"As soon as I receive the assistance, I pay my debts and buy food, cleaning supplies, and medicines," Amal explains.

“We only buy what is essential,” she says. “I cook one meal a day so we can manage.”

Apart from food and medicine there are other important expenses. Children need clothing and school supplies, and often these simple items are out of reach for the family. When her youngest son Ali, 14, recently asked for summer clothes, the mother could not afford them.

“It was a very hard moment for me,” Amal recalls. "Now I’m waiting for the next assistance so I can take him to buy clothes.”

Cash assistance covers only the bare minimum, and many refugee needs remain unmet. As part of the 2025 UNHCR Annual Basic Needs Cash Assistance Programme Assessment, 98 per cent respondents receiving cash assistance reported that they cannot fully cover their basic needs, particularly food, health-related costs, clothing and footwear. Yet even the small amount – in average JOD 46(USD 65) per family per quarter in camps - helps families like Amal’s stabilize their financial situation.

“Without it, I would rely even more on debt,” she says.

As the 2026 UNHCR Socio-Economic Survey on refugees in Jordan indicates, cash assistance plays a decisive role in preventing deterioration of living standards and keeping refugees from falling deeper in poverty. For families like Amal’s, cash assistance, provided thanks to support from the European Union as part of a joint UNHCR and the World Food Programme (WFP) initiative, remains a critical lifeline, helping refugees cover essential needs, adapt to daily challenges, and retain a sense of control over their lives.

Co-funded by the European Union and implemented by UNHCR and WFP, this action aims to enhance the economic participation of refugees in Jordan. It focuses on providing basic needs assistance to the most vulnerable, while developing pathways to connect refugees with livelihood opportunities. By bridging immediate humanitarian needs and promoting self-reliance, the initiative also contributes to the resilience of host communities.