Shadow Aid to Syrian Refugees

The challenges of delivering aid to war zones and makeshift refugee camps are immense. Elizabeth Dickinson describes an unofficial shadow aid system for Syrian refugees in Jordan for the Middle East Research and Information Project: “Across the Middle East, the United Nations is coordinating the largest operation in its history to help nearly 3 million Syrian refugees at a cost of $4.2 billion in 2014 alone….But on the side, hundreds, perhaps thousands, of start-up charities and regional donors have built parallel networks of aid.” Distribution is uneven, relying on select connections and networks, manipulated by politics and corruption. The article describes the experiences of a few recipients and charity flowing from wealthy oil states. Dickinson concludes that the piecemeal approach to aid based on individual whims results in inefficiencies, waste, new power structures, inequality and conflict – all of which threaten sustained giving. Refugees might receive dates during Ramadan but their children have no schools to attend. - YaleGlobal