Khan Dannoun Refugee camp

Khan Dannoun camp is situated near the ruins of Khan Dannoun, which was built several centuries ago to give overnight accommodation to trading caravans on the ancient route between Jerusalem and Constantinople (modern day Istanbul). In 1948, the ruins provided shelter for refugees from villages in northern Palestine.

The camp, which is 23 kilometres south of Damascus, was officially established in 1950-1951 on an area of 25,000 square meters.

Khan Dannoun is one of the poorest camps in Syria. The majority of the refugees are farm workers on Syrian-owned lands; others are wage labourers, while a few commute to industrial plants. Many families have difficulty in meeting even their most basic needs. The pressure on young people to leave school early to contribute to the family income means a generally low level of education in the camp. This is especially true of women, who find jobs as house cleaners or workers in clothing factories.

There is a relatively high incidence of illnesses associated with poor environmental health conditions, and a high incidence of inherited diseases such as thalassaemia and sickle-cell anaemia. This is difficult to combat because in such a poor community marriage between first cousins is common and marriages outside the extended family are unaffordable for many.

A lack of proper sanitation facilities is the most pressing problem in the camp. Wells, dug without official permission, have dried up due to lack of rain and constant over-exploitation of the ground water. Many refugees now buy water from mobile tankers operating in the area, but the water is not always safe for human consumption. The camp also lacks a sewerage system and shelters only have pit latrines. The proximity of pit latrines to water wells poses a major health hazard for camp residents as well as for neighbouring villages. UNRWA's main priority in the camp is to install proper sewerage and water networks. A camp infrastructure improvement project, including water and sewage networks, roads, water and wastewater systems, will be completed in 2009.

Registered refugees:

• Total: 9,788 (December 2008)
• Average family size: 4.9 members
• Camp population by age:

UNRWA Education Programme

• Schools: 4 double-shifted schools, operating in 2 school buildings.
• Staff members: 65
• Pupils: 1726

One of the school buildings is in need of construction of specialised rooms – science and computer laboratories, a music room, sports facilities, a learning resource centre and a learning support centre.

UNRWA Relief and Social Services Programme

• Food distribution centre: 1
• Social safety net (SSN) programme beneficiaries: 1031 individuals (326 families) receive 935 daily rations

Microcredit Community Support Programme – Community Managed Funds:

• Individual loans (up to USD 3000 for urgent health issues, to improve households, education etc., since August 2008): 26
• Group-Guaranteed Lending (of value USD 2500 – 5000 per group, for self-formed groups of five women, since August 2008): active – 30, general – 30

UNRWA Health Programme

• Health centre: 1
• Number of medical staff: 10
• Number of patient consultations per month: 2782

Major problems:

• Roads are not paved
• Water problems
• Health problems because of consanguinity
• High number of dropouts in schools
• Overcrowded households.