Housing Rehabilitation Project

About the project

Within the Kingdom strategy to combat poverty and unemployment adopted by the Jordanian government. DPA started the social safety project in 1999, which we seek through it the improvement of living and housing conditions for poor areas which Includes:

1- Improving infrastructure, physical and social structures

2- Creating job opportunities for the residents of these areas

3- Improving the level of education and skills and establishing social and training centers.

4- Improving environmental and health conditions.

And since the camps in the Kingdom are considered among the poor areas, the implementation of the infrastructure development program has been carried out, which includes the following:

physical infrastructure

As a first phase of the project it was decided by the authorities to focus on the physical infrastructure of the camps, while leaving a range of freedom for the implementation of the rest of the phases in light of the availability of the necessary funding for it.

The physical infrastructure was divided into two main parts:

- The physical infrastructure (inside the camps) and it cost was estimated at 25 million JD.

- The physical infrastructure (outside the camps) and its cost was estimated at 22 million JD and was concentrated in the establishment of four purification stations to serve the camps of Talbiya, Sokhna, Jerash and the martyr Azmi Al-Mufti and other areas adjacent to these camps.

Infrastructure projects in the camps included the following works:

1. Sewage network for camps that don’t have it
2.  Water network, as it needed partially or completely.
3.  Rainwater drainage network as it needed.
4. Public lighting units for electricity poles that needs maintenance in order to preserve public safety, in coordination with the electricity companies
5.  retaining walls in areas of danger to public safety.
6.  Maintenance of asphalt streets and concrete entrances

DPA provided all necessary cooperation to the Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDC) to implement infrastructure projects in the camps.

These projects in the various camps has been in progress since 1999. Below is a description of the projects that have been completed, with a total value of about (20) million JD.

Social infrastructure

Housing project for poor resident in the camps

    About 400,000 people live in the thirteen camps in the Kingdom, the vast majority of them are Jordanian citizens of refugees and displaced persons. The total number of housing units in these camps is estimated at (26) thousand housing units that were established in the fifties and sixties of the 19^th century.

Over the past years, the camp residents developed their homes with self-initiatives, which contributed to the development of the camps in general. However, the impoverished groups of camp residents were not able to improve their housing situation it was estimated between 10-15% of the houses remained in need of rehabilitation to help ensure the safety of the house and the family inhabiting it, while preserving their dignity, and improve their standard of living.

The rehabilitation project in the camps had a positive impact on the residents in many ways the most important ones are:

1- Ensuring the minimum level of public safety to provide safe accommodation for the poor in the camps.

2- Improving the living standard, especially the housing conditions of the poor in the camps.

3- Contribute to the combat against unemployment and poverty by employing a number of skilled and unskilled workers in the implementation of the project from the residents of the camp

4- Improving the health and environmental status in the camps.

The reality of housing units in the camps

The reality of the housing units in the camps is as follows:

1. The housing units remained as established by the International Relief Agency (UNRWA), as the walls and ceiling are of zinc (Al-Barakiat).

2. Residential units whose walls are built of bricks by its owners but the roofs stayed of zinc.

3. Residential units to which the residents added permanent rooms made of concrete, so they became of Zink and permanent rooms.

4. Housing units that have been completely reconstructed using permanent materials by their owners or by the parties working to rehabilitate these houses.

Working Mechanism:

1. Conducting social studies in the camps.

2. Determining the target groups and the list of beneficiaries in the light of the selection criteria.

3. Determining the type of technical interventions necessary in the light of the field inspection on the housing units of the list of beneficiaries.

4. Preparing engineering studies and plans for these interventions, bills of quantities and the necessary bid documents.

5. Inviting execution bids and referring them according to the applicable governmental laws and regulations.

6. Follow up the implementation of the project and technical supervision until the completion and receipt of the project.  

The project contains:

1. Re-establishing a room of bricks and concrete with an area not exceeding 16 m2.

2. Building a room + bathroom with an area of about 18 m2.

3. Building a room + kitchen with an area of about 24 m2.

4. Building a room + bathroom + kitchen with an area of about 30 m2

Status after rehabilitation

1- The condition of the houses

The addition of a new space with high specifications to the housing unit is a positive impact for its residents, this new addition has many positive repercussions on the family, whether in terms of social, health or environmental terms, and it contributes to creating a more positive environment for family members, as it can be used as an emergency room in difficult weather during winter, for example.

2- Social Impact

Due to the problem of overpopulation in the housing units inside the camps, in addition to the specifications of the old building that existed before rehabilitation, this project has reflected positively on all the families benefiting from it. As the majority of families focus their use on the new room.

3- Environmental and health impact

Most of the housing units before rehabilitation were built from materials that did not help to provide a clean healthy environment for the family, and the material (Zinco), which was before rehabilitation, is characterized by being significantly affected by weather during the year seasons, which is reflected on the environmental and health situation inside the house, in addition to that. The new rehabilitation of the house has a role in decreasing of diseases associated with weather conditions and reducing the possibility of transmission between family members. The housing unit has also improved in terms of cleanliness and it has become possible to provide a clean home, while the percentage of insects and unpleasant odors inside the house has decreased.

 (2293) housing units were rehabilitated during the period from (2005) to (2022), as the table shows below, and the project is still ongoing until this date