Jordan wants donors to coordinate aid to refugees 

(MENAFN - Jordan Times) Jordan on Tuesday asked international donors interested in helping Syrian refugees to coordinate with the government.

During a meeting with UK Secretary of State for International Development Andrew Mitchell, Prime Minister Fayez Tarawneh called on international donors and relief agencies to coordinate with the Kingdom for better handling of the refugees' issue, which he said has added to Jordan's burdens, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

He thanked Mitchell for his government's decision to donate a new package of aid worth 10 million for international relief agencies offering humanitarian services to the Syrian refugees in Jordan and Turkey.

The new donation was unveiled Tuesday during a visit by Mitchell and the British Ambassador to Amman Peter Millett to the Zaatari Refugee Camp near Mafraq, 80 kilometres northeast of the capital, during which the former said that around half of the 10 million donation will be given to relief agencies offering humanitarian aid for the Syrian refugees in Jordan, Petra said.

Expressing thanks to the Jordanian government for hosting the Syrian refugees, Mitchell called on international donors to help Jordan in this humanitarian mission it is undertaking, according to Petra.

Mitchell also said with the additional 10 million, the value on humanitarian aid the British government has offered so far to the Syrian refugees has totalled 27.5 million.

In addition to presenting infrastructure and consultation services to the Syrian refugees in Zaatari, Mitchell said, the British government will also provide food items to 11,000 Syrian children in the camp and mental healthcare to other children.

The British minister also noted that emergency cash contributions will be secured to 1,000 Syrian families residing outside the camp in local communities and more than 18,000 Syrian refugees will be given emergency food supplies, according to Petra.

Mitchell and Millett toured the refugee camp and were briefed by Andrew Harper, UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) representative in Jordan, about the health and nutrition services offered to the Syrians who fled the ongoing violence in their country.

Also yesterday, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Jafar Hassan discussed with Mitchell and an accompanying delegation the economic difficulties facing the Kingdom.

During the meeting, which Millett also attended, Mitchell expressed his country's keenness on helping Jordan deal with the influx of the Syrian refugees to its territories, Petra said.