New Faces, Less Water, and a Changing Economy in a Growing City. A Case Study of Refugees in Towns
This report explores how Syrian refugees have transformed the city of Irbid as the latest arrivals in a long history of forced migration to the city that has included Palestinians, Iraqis, Sudanese, and Somalis. We chose #Irbid for three reasons: first, while Jordan’s camps and capital city, Amman, are heavily represented in refugee research, the Middle East’s other medium-sized cities like Irbid—that house the majority of the region’s refugees—are underrepresented. Second, in addition to hosting refugees, Irbid is being transformed by major social, economic, and demographic changes similar to other urban areas around the world, providing a valuable case study for understanding refugee integration more broadly. Third, the authors have a deep and broad set of connections in Irbid that gave access to a wide range of local perspectives.
These trends include rapid depletion of regional water resources, increased urbanization and its associated social changes, and shifting job opportunities for refugees, Jordanians, and other migrants as Jordan modernizes and globalizes its economy. We argue that the future of life in Irbid, and its ability to host new arrivals, will depend on how Jordanians and Syrians alike adapt to a new sedentary, urbanized lifestyle; how economically equitable and accessible cities can be to new arrivals in a globalizing, developing economy; and how the region can adapt to severe water scarcity. Many of these challenges can be managed with effective urban planning, but there has been a shortage of coordination between humanitarian, municipal, and development actors in Irbid.
Throughout the report, we unpack these complex forces that are transforming the city and lives of its residents, going into detail about how refugees, Jordanians, and other migrants experience and are transforming Irbid’s housing stock, society and culture, water and wastewater systems, education system, healthcare system, security and public safety, transportation system, international humanitarian space, and economy. We share the voices of average refugees and Jordanians themselves, rather than relying on top-down views from government and humanitarian agencies’ perspectives. Finally, we build on our understanding of refugee integration in urban areas by linking individual experiences, neighborhood- and city-level changes, and transnational trends.
▻https://www.refugeesintowns.org/all-reports/irbid
Pour télécharger le rapport:
▻https://www.refugeesintowns.org/s/RIT-Report-Irbid.pdf
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