The conference entitled "Prolonged Displacement - Hopes, Aspirations and Solutions" was remotely organized through zoom by the Refugees, Displaced Persons and Forced Migration Studies Center at Yarmouk University in cooperation with several institutions, namely the German-Jordanian University and the Syrian-Jordanian Education Program (EDU-Syria), the Academics in Solidarity Program at the Free University of Berlin (AIS), the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), the German Agency for Scientific Exchange (DAAD), and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The conference, which was supported by the German University Project Office at the University of Magdeburg-Stendal for Applied Sciences, the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, and the European Union, addressed several issues associated with asylum and displacement and their implications.
On the first day of the conference, two sessions were held. The first was entitled "Prolonged displacement as a regional and international phenomenon," and it was conducted by the German Jordanian University whose Vice-President for International Affairs, Prof. Ralf Roskov, explained that the main objective of the conference was to highlight the main issues and challenges related to the fate of refugees, thereby contributing to enhancing the response of the host communities to refugees. Prof. Roskov focused on the role of the social action and the activities of the civil society institutions in promoting the mental and psychological health of refugees. He then expressed his thanks to the Center for Refugees and Displaced Persons at Yarmouk University for its important and active role in supporting refugees and implementing projects that are concerned with empowering refugees and enhancing their abilities, pointing out that the German University of Jordan and Yarmouk University have carried out many joint projects in this field, as evident in the Syrian/Jordanian education project (EDU-Syria), which has provided the opportunity for many Syrian refugees to complete their university studies.
Dr. Anas Al-Subh, the director of the Refugees, Displaced Persons and Forced Migration studies center reviewed a set of figures on the reality of asylum and displacement in the world, noting that at least 80 million people around the world have been forced to leave their homelands in the past 10 years and that 26 million refugees have been registered under UNHCR records. Al-Subh said that the war in Syria left 6.6 million displaced people by the end of 2019, explaining that Lebanon hosted (1 out of 7) refugees, Jordan (1 out of 15) refugees, while Turkey (1 out of 23) refugees.
Dr. Diya’ Abu Tair, the project officer of the (EDU-Syria), explained that the project provides scholarships for Syrian and Jordanian refugees who are less fortunate to pursue higher education or participate in vocational training programs in Jordanian universities and colleges. He explained that the project began in 2015 and will continue until 2023, adding that the (EDU- Syria) is an educational and humanitarian project funded by the European Union and that it supported more than 1,000 graduates so far.
Dr. Floren Costal of the Academics in Solidarity program at the Free University of Berlin, Germany, spoke about the program that aims at establishing a network of researchers in Germany, Lebanon, and Jordan and at strengthening the research and scientific cooperation among them, which opens up new horizons for researchers and enables them to learn about other cultures and civilizations.
For his part, Mohammed Sayasana, a Syrian student studying at Yarmouk University, reviewed his experience in facing the challenges and difficulties he faced since coming as a refugee to Jordan in 2013, pointing out that he was able to obtain a scholarship to complete his university studies in the Department of Civil Engineering at Yarmouk University as part of the international projects that focus on empowering refugees in the educational aspect.