Jordan: Wash Infrastructure & Services Assessment in Zaatari Camp Assessment Report

Since 2011, a total of 656,170 Syrians have registered as refugees in Jordan; 79,937 of whom are currently registered in Zaatari camp, in Mafraq governorate. UNICEF is the lead agency for the WASH sector in Jordan, coordinating all related activities within the camp since it opened in 2012. ACTED, JEN and Oxfam have operated as key partners in the implementation of WASH activities in the camp, including delivery of treated water through a free water trucking service, the collection of waste water and solid waste, building and repair and maintenance of private WASH facilities, and hygiene promotion activities. Six years after the onset of the Syrian crisis, UNICEF, in coordination with these humanitarian organisations, has been shifting towards greater sustainability of programming. This is seen most evidently in the construction of the Zaatari Wastewater Network (WWN), which has connected every household in the camp to a common wastewater disposal system, and the simultaneous construction of private toilet facilities in each household, as a more cost-efficient and sustainable solution to WASH needs than communal facilities.

This research sought to evaluate the impact of the wastewater management project conducted by UNICEF and its implementing partners on sanitation and hygiene practices in Zaatari camp, and camp residents’ perception of the adequacy of this, so as to inform future programming. This survey was divided into two phases, the first of which aimed to a) identify primary household sources of drinking water; b) assess the prevalence and suitability of private WASH infrastructure across all households;  c) record primary wastewater and solid waste disposal practices across all households in the camp; and d) gauge perceptions of adequacy of WASH repair and maintenance (R&M) services amongst the refugee community. To supplement the assessment of private WASH infrastructure, phase two monitored structural damage to communal sewage interceptor tanks in the camp and explored reasons for damage and community awareness of potential related hygiene risks.