Baqa'a Camp

Baqa'a camp was one of six ‘emergency’ camps set up in 1968 to accommodate Palestine refugees and displaced people who were displaced from the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza Strip by the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. The camp, which is the largest in Jordan, lies about 20 kilometres north of Amman.

Between June 1967 and February 1968, the refugees and displaced people were housed in temporary camps in the Jordan Valley, but had to be moved when military operations escalated in the area. Baqa'a was already a large camp at its founding, with 5,000 tents for 26,000 refugees over an area of 1.4 square kilometres.

Between 1969 and 1971, UNRWA replaced the tents with 8,000 prefabricated shelters to protect people from the harsh winters in Jordan. Most of the camp's inhabitants have since built more durable concrete shelters.

MAJOR CHALLENGES

Poverty and high unemployment are major challenges facing the residents of Baqa’a. The camp is ranked third of the ten camps in Jordan in poverty, with 32 per cent of Palestine refugees in the camp reportedly having an income below the national poverty line of JD 814, according to a 2013 Fafo Foundation report.

Baqa’a camp is ranked second of the ten camps in unemployment, with 17 per cent of refugees living in the camp being unemployed.

Baqa’a camp has the lowest prevalence of chronic health problems of all Palestine refugee camps in Jordan, standing at percent. Still, 46 per cent of Palestine refugees in the camp don’t have health insurance. Upgrading of camp infrastructure and shelter repair and rehabilitation are also major challenges.