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Home > About Us > Latest News > Iraqi Refugees: World Vision Focuses on Children's Needs in Host Countries

Iraqi Refugees: World Vision Focuses on Children's Needs in Host Countries



World Vision assisting refugee families in Jordan, calling for global action on behalf of their children

April 10, 2007


Emmanuel (translation: "God with us") is an Iraqi refugee from a Christian family who recently drew this picture of the Bible. He has written "Holy Bible," and beneath it, "Iraq, Our Beloved Country" in Arabic. "I drew the Bible because I love Iraq," he says.
As violence in Iraq continues to contribute to the largest refugee crisis in the Middle East in 50 years, World Vision has launched a combined advocacy and relief effort to assist children and families fleeing to neighboring countries.

In His Own Words:

Watch a video of an interview with 9-year-old Fawaz.

Some 2 million Iraqis have left their volatile homeland, and many are struggling to cope without access to health care, legal employment, or education for their children in host countries.

Unseen Crisis


"This is largely a hidden crisis, but we want to help change that," says Joe Mettimano, director of public policy and advocacy for World Vision. "World Vision is calling on the international community to ensure adequate shelter, health care, education, and other critical services for these children whose families are increasingly struggling to meet basic needs."

Our detailed recommendations for addressing this crisis to be presented at the April 17-18 United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) conference in Geneva include the following:

  • Governments must provide full funding for the UN appeal and non-governmental organizations like World Vision to provide health care, education, food, and household items, and social programs needed by Iraqi children and other vulnerable refugees.
  • The international community must ensure basic protections, religious freedoms, and human rights for Iraqi refugee families caught in legal limbo.
  • The international community must ensure that borders in the region are kept open to Iraqi families fleeing life-threatening violence, and that religious minorities and other vulnerable groups are not forced to return until it is safe.

Children Suffering


"We’re talking about children who have witnessed violence and death repeatedly in their home country," says Rein Paulsen, World Vision’s senior director for emergency response.

"Now, without education, basic protections, or job opportunities for their parents, these vulnerable children are facing a future of poverty and disenfranchisement in the region."

Through two local partners, World Vision has begun assisting 10,000 refugees in Jordan with food, basic household items, health care, and special programs for children who cannot attend school. We are also providing these partners — Messengers of Peace and the Jordanian Evangelical Committee for Relief and Development — with training in child protection and program management to increase their capacities to assist these families.

World Vision hopes to expand its response to the Iraqi refugee crisis in the Middle East as funding is secured and additional partners are identified.

We have served vulnerable and impoverished families in the Middle East for three decades. Our goal as a Christian humanitarian aid agency in this region rife with political and social tension, is to create an environment where children can survive and thrive in order to reach their full potential and as a "generation transformed" help to build a lasting peace.



Learn More


>> Watch a video of an interview with 9-year-old Fawaz.
>> Read about another group of refugees in the Middle East who need our urgent prayers and help.

Get Involved

>> Please pray for the millions of Iraqi refugees and internally displaced persons who daily struggle to provide for their families. Pray also for World Vision's relief activities, to effectively assist Iraqi refugees from all backgrounds through our partners on the ground, especially in meeting the needs of vulnerable children.

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Who Is World Vision?
World Vision is a Christian humanitarian organization dedicated to working with children, families and their communities worldwide to reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice.

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Learn More

Watch a video of an interview with 9-year-old Fawaz.
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About World Vision's Iraqi refugee response.
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Read about another group of refugees in the Middle East who need our urgent prayers and help.

Get Involved

Please pray for the millions of Iraqi refugees and internally displaced persons who daily struggle to provide for their families. Pray also for World Vision's relief activities, to effectively assist Iraqi refugees from all backgrounds through our partners on the ground, especially in meeting the needs of vulnerable children.
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