AMMAN — The World Food Programme (WFP) has been forced to scale back food assistance for thousands of refugees in Jordan due to severe funding shortages, according to its latest Country Brief released on Tuesday.

 

The UN agency said that it phased out general food assistance for around 135,000 Syrian refugees living in Jordanian host communities in April, while continuing support for some 85,000 refugees residing in the Zaatari and Azraq refugee camps.

 

Overall, WFP assisted an estimated 585,000 people during the month, transferring around $2 million in cash-based aid. The agency warned that it requires $20 million between May and October 2026 to sustain its critical operations in the Kingdom.

 

A separate assessment by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) highlighted the mounting financial pressures facing refugee households in Jordan.

 

The UNHCR’s Basic Needs Cash Assistance Jordan Programme Assessment 2025 found that cash assistance remains a vital lifeline for refugees, although it continues to fall short of covering essential living costs.

 

According to the report, Jordan hosts more than 450,000 registered refugees, 93 per cent of whom are Syrian.

 

Around 81 per cent live in host communities, while nearly two-thirds of refugee households are classified as poor and heavily reliant on humanitarian support.

 

Despite continued assistance from WFP and UNHCR, many refugees remain unable to meet their basic needs.

 

In 2025, UNHCR’s cash assistance programme distributed some $37.6 million to 214,503 individuals, yet 63 per cent of recipients said that the aid covered less than half of their essential expenses.

 

The situation was found to be more severe inside refugee camps, where 67 per cent of households reported being able to meet only half or less of their basic requirements.

 

The UNHCR report also noted that many refugee families continue to rely on debt and harmful coping mechanisms, including child labour and begging, amid worsening economic conditions.

 

Jordan, which hosts one of the world’s largest refugee populations relative to its population size, continues to face growing economic and social pressures linked to the prolonged refugee crisis.

 

Despite cuts to general food assistance, WFP maintained support for education and child nutrition programmes.

 

The agency said that more than half a million vulnerable students benefited from school feeding initiatives in April, including healthy meals for around 106,000 students and the distribution of 480 metric tonnes of fortified date bars to 400,000 students in host communities.

 

WFP also highlighted progress in promoting refugee self-reliance.

 

The agency said that it completed the first cohort of its vocational skills training programme in the camps, equipping 230 refugee youth with practical skills in fields including information technology, carpentry, welding and tailoring.

 

The programme forms part of broader efforts aimed at enhancing long-term resilience and livelihood opportunities for refugees and vulnerable communities.

 

In addition, WFP said that it is supporting Jordan’s National Aid Fund by training social workers on advanced monitoring tools and is partnering with the Agricultural Credit Corporation to assist smallholder farmers through climate-adaptive technologies.

 

On regional refugee movements, WFP reported that around 192,000 Syrian refugees returned to Syria between December 2024 and April 2026.

 

Under its 2023-2027 Country Strategic Plan, WFP said that it is seeking to balance immediate humanitarian assistance with longer-term programmes focused on nutrition, education, social protection and resilience-building.

 

However, the agency warned that widening funding gaps threaten to undermine these efforts at a time when both refugees and host communities are facing increasing economic hardship.