A kiss for dad

Between piles of wooden pallets and busy forklift trucks, Noor rushes towards her father, across the sawmill site in south-east Amman. Omar is waiting for his six-year-old daughter in front of the former foreman's office – as he does every weekday at 1 pm when she comes home from kindergarten. With one last big leap, she jumps into her father's open, outstretched arms. Noor is Omar's pride and joy. He will do anything for her future and the safety of his family and has endured a life of poverty and dependence in Jordan for more than six years.

In the sparse building that used to accommodate the foreman's desk, his wife Haya is waiting with their nine-month-old daughter Shahed in her arms. Omar's gaze falls with a mixture of confidence and concern on Shahed, who was born healthy in Amman thanks to Medair's help. "Haya has diabetes and needs insulin injections," says Razan, Medair's health officer in Amman. During her first pregnancy with Noor, the family received help from the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR). After the maternity care programme was discontinued, Medair took care of the family. "While being pregnant with Shahed, my wife developed high blood pressure, which has persisted to this day," adds Omar. She also needs medication for this. "I would never have been able to afford it myself," says the 41-year-old.

Like Omar's family, thousands of displaced people have found refuge in Jordan. Refugees from Yemen, Iraq and Sudan are not allowed to work legally. But Omar's family, who fled from Yemen to Jordan in 2018 to escape the conflict there, also have to make a living. Omar tries to make ends meet with unskilled labour jobs, dragging heavy boxes at the local supermarket around the corner and unloading goods from lorries despite severe knee and back pain. He earns 130 Jordanian dinars a month, which is not even enough for the medication his wife needs. "The boss of the supermarket is nice and understands our situation," he says modestly. He has often borrowed money from friends to make ends meet. He can't pay it back.

The father sits on the only chair in the room that has been the family's new home for two years. Lost in thought, he looks down at the floor. You can only imagine how heavy the burden is of not being able to provide adequately for the family. "How are we supposed to make a living?" Omar asks in despair shortly afterwards. His voice trembles. "I have to pay rent for this one room we live in. I have to buy food, medication, pay for electricity and water. How is that supposed to work?" he asks again. It costs 450 dinar a year just to pay the fees so that his daughter Noor can attend a private kindergarten.

To ensure his daughter Noor gets a good education, Omar uses all available means to fight the financial downward spiral, which is almost impossible to break. How long the family can persevere is uncertain. The fear of losing what little home and hope they have is a constant companion. A return to their homeland, where Omar's mother endures, is out of the question. The conflict in Yemen is in its ninth year and there is no end in sight. Millions are still on the run and trying to survive.

With the funds available, Medair, with support from the European Union, is working to improve access to reproductive health and emergency life-saving medical services for refugees and vulnerable Jordanian families through cash assistance. The focus is on the care of pregnant and breastfeeding women around the time of childbirth. However, before the beneficiaries receive support, a needs analysis is carried out. As resources are limited, not all those in need can be reached. Omar's family was selected on the basis of defined criteria and included in the programme. The family received regular visits from Medair health officer Razan and her colleagues from the Jordanian team.

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While Omar tells the moving story of their escape, Razan plays intimately with daughter Noor on the carpet. "She's a clever girl," says the Medair employee after a while, stroking her hair with care. The father smiles at these words. The worry lines on his forehead disappear for a moment. "Yes, she is".

With support from the European Union, Medair is supporting vulnerable refugees to overcome ongoing access barriers to healthcare and emergency treatment.