One of the lessons the Syrian crisis has brought to the fore is that protracted refugee situations have become the norm. This new reality has called for a shift from a short term humanitarian response focused on saving lives to a developmental one that addresses the long-term needs of both refugees and host communities. Lebanon and Jordan, as countries where the majority of Syrian refugees live outside refugee camps, have been testing grounds for ideas on how to make this transition.
A recent study on young people’s education and employment in displacement-contexts, conducted by the Centre for Lebanese Studies at Lebanese American University, and the Centre for Development and Emergency Practice at Oxford Brookes University, follows the trajectories of 1449 young refugees and nationals in Lebanon and Jordan. The study exposes the challenges faced by refugees in education and the rift between education and employment in both national and humanitarian policies.
Education and employment are two sectors where the response to the Syrian crisis attempted to move from a humanitarian to a development approach. However, after nearly ten years, there is ample evidence both in Lebanon and Jordan that shows the inability of current interventions to create development for both refugees and host populations.
