Child-Safe Spaces for Refugees

The UNHCR reports that there are approximately 620,500 people living as refugees in Jordan, and more than half are under the age of 18. In northern Jordan’s Azraq camp, there are over 7,000 Syrian children, many of whom are traumatized by war, arriving in the camp with nothing. In 2013, the UNHCR requested Aviation Without Borders and the Scout and Guide Fellowship to assist with the organization’s ‘Toys 4 Smiles’ project. The toys supplied for this project were sourced from individual donations from families across the UK, and the response was overwhelming.

Thanks to a generous donation from Emirates Skycargo, Airlink and Aviation Without Borders were able to coordinate shipment of approximately 1,055 kilograms of toys to Amman, Jordan. The toys arrived in mid-July 2014, and were distributed to the child-safe spaces – created by International Refugee Committee, International Medical Corps, CARE, and Mercy Corp – in the new Azraq camp in September. With the help of this program, many children and families in the refugee camp are beginning to find the security and stability that they had lost when they were displaced by the Syrian Civil War.