Attachments
Executive Summary
The Basic Needs programme is UNHCR Jordan’s largest cash assistance programme, which provided nearly US$ 70 million in cash assistance to refugees in 2023 via mobile wallets, Iris- enabled ATM and ATM cards. In October 2023, UNHCR delivered US$ 5,846,031 to 31,772 refugees (28,375 Syrians and 3,037 non-Syrians refugees), for an average transfer value of US$ 184 per family.
UNHCR conducts PDM on a regular basis to understand how the refugees who receive basic needs cash assistance access and use it, how the assistance helps them to meet their most basic needs, and how it contributes to their sense of well-being. This PDM covered the whole of Jordan, excluding refugee camps, and provided statistically representative findings for both Syrian families (n=1,026) and non-Syrian families (n=327).1
Outcomes of the basic needs cash assistance
The average income of refugee families stood at JOD 225 per month. It comprised UNHCR basic needs assistance, WFP food assistance (86%), the family’s income2 (20%), loans (12%) and other cash assistance3 (9%). Noteworthy, the governorate of residence significantly affected the average income of families. Refugees predominantly allocated their income to essential needs such as food, rent, health expenses and bills (including electricity, water bills and phone credit). As UNHCR’s basic needs cash assistance represented 67% of their overall income, it contributed significantly to the expenditures reported by families.
Overall, 43% of refugee families reported meeting about half, most or all of their basic needs. The top three goods or services that refugee families (reporting meeting less than half of their basic needs) could not afford were health costs (including medicines), food and rent.
In the month following the delivery of cash assistance, 95% of refugees reported that their families had to adopt at least one negative coping strategy, as measured by the Livelihood Coping Strategy Index. The two most recurrent negative coping strategies were buying food on credit (borrowing money to buy food from non-relatives/friends) and reducing non-food expenditures such as education/health. The primary reasons prompting refugee families to resort to negative coping strategies are centred on purchasing food (72% of respondents, n=1,282), paying for rent (63%) and covering health expenses (47%).
UNHCR’s cash assistance contributed to improving the overall well-being of refugees, with 94% of respondents considering that UNHCR’s support improved (slightly, moderately or significantly) the living conditions and reduced the financial burden of their family and their feeling of stress.
Factors such as the respondents’ nationality, gender, governorate of residence, family size, income and dependency ratio were not found to be predictive of families’ ability to meet their basic needs, need to resort to negative coping strategies or perceptions of well-being. The positive impact of the UNHCR basic needs programme on overall well-being is evident. However, the situation remains precarious, with 57% of families struggling to meet even half of their basic needs and 87% having resorted to emergency or crisis-driven coping strategies in the past 30 days.
Delivery and receipt of the cash assistance
Overall, 99% of refugees received the cash assistance from UNHCR as planned, via different delivery mechanisms. 31% of refugees reported needing help to withdraw the assistance money due to a lack of financial literacy and limited mobility. Refugees receiving aid through an ATM card encountered greater difficulties in withdrawing assistance, making them more inclined to seek external support. The age and gender of the respondents emerged as predictive factors of their need for support in withdrawing assistance. Notably, women, regardless of age, were consistently more likely to seek assistance compared with men. People older than 60 years old were also more likely to ask for assistance. Without regard to gender, governorate or delivery mechanisms, there was a consistently high perception of safety when receiving assistance or keeping it in cash at home.
82% predominantly favoured cash assistance as their preferred modality, followed by a combination of cash and in-kind.
80% of refugees demonstrated awareness of how to report complaints and provide feedback regarding cash assistance to UNHCR. The primary factor influencing awareness was the governorate where refugees were situated. Refugees in Amman, and to a lesser extent in Zarqa,4 exhibited significantly higher levels of awareness of Complaints and Feedback Mechanism (CFM) channels compared with refugees living in other governorates. The awareness of CFM among refugees was also influenced by the respondents’ age and gender. In general, male respondents demonstrated a higher likelihood of being aware of CFM compared with female respondents. Additionally, irrespective of gender, respondents aged above 60 years were notably less likely to know how to report complaints and provide feedback on cash assistance to UNHCR. Refugees, irrespective of their nationality, expressed an overall sense of ease in using the complaint and feedback channels they were acquainted with.