UK commits another £20m to Syrian refugee crisis

10 Sep 13
The UK is set to spend another £20m in humanitarian aid to help Jordan respond to the Syrian refugee crisis

By Judith Ugwumadu | 9 September 2013

The UK is set to spend another £20m in humanitarian aid to help Jordan respond to the Syrian refugee crisis.

UK International Development Secretary Justine Greening set out how the funds would be spent in a visit to Jordan yesterday. The £20m includes: £10m to the World Food Programme; £6m to Unicef for both refugees and vulnerable Jordanian host communities; and £3.2m to the Danish Refugee Council to provide emergency cash assistance and other forms of support to unregistered refugees. 

More than two million people have fled Syria as the civil war has escalated, according to the Red Cross.

Greening also used her visit to Jordan to warn that the international community needs to step up its support for refugee children from Syria ‘or risk a lost generation’. 

She said that, with over one million Syrian children now refugees, all faced an uncertain future.

‘In the future it will be these children who have to help rebuild a more peaceful, democratic Syria, so we must give them the skills they need to do that. There is a stark choice to make – either we invest in the future of Syria or we risk an entire lost generation,’ said Greening.

The £20m package brings total UK support to Jordan to £87m, although Britain has so far committed £400m to wider humanitarian efforts arising from the Syrian conflict. This is the UK’s largest ever response to a humanitarian crisis, according to the Department for International Development.

Did you enjoy this article?

Related articles

Have your say

Newsletter

CIPFA latest

Most popular

Most commented

Events & webinars