VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB
DE RUEHAM #3384 3631322
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 281322Z DEC 08
FM AMEMBASSY AMMAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4034
INFO RUEHGB/AMEMBASSY BAGHDAD 6134
RUEHDM/AMEMBASSY DAMASCUS 4033
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0690
UNCLAS AMMAN 003384
SENSITIVE
SIPDIS
DEPARTMENT FOR PRM/ANE
E.O. 12958: DECL: N/A
TAGS: PREF EAID IZ JO
SUBJECT: Monitoring and Evaluation for Save The Children-
Jordan Cooperative Agreement SPRMCO07CA049 "TaQleem Youth"
1. (U) RefCoord attended on December 27, the first
graduation ceremony for students attending Save The
Children-supported Ta'leem classes in Amman, Jordan.
RefCoord met with Jason Erb, Deputy Program Director for
Save the Children-Jordan, and with trainers and volunteers
for the Taleem program. Fifty vulnerable Iraqi students
received certificates marking their successful completion
of vocation training in "customer service" and basic
communication. Jordanian trainers and educators attended
the graduation ceremony and expressed support for the
students. After the ceremony, RefCoord met with 23
students to discuss their experience. The students ranged
in age from 17 to 25, and had come to Jordan without
completing secondary school in Iraq.
2. (U) In accordance with the program objectives, students
had learned conflict resolution strategies and strengthened
their connections to one another and to Jordanian community
organizations. The students said they learned valuable
coping skills in the program that helped them manage their
own anger and frustration about their life as refugees.
Most students agreed that living among Jordanians was not a
problem. On the streets, students had heard negative
comments generally directed at Iraq and Iraqis, but none of
the students had experienced direct discrimination or
exclusion.
3. (U) In discussion with RefCoord, the students praised
the vocational training, but they expressed concerns about
the trainingQs limitations and about what next step they
might take to improve their lives in Jordan. Two young men
said they were seeking [illegal] employment in Jordan to
put their newly acquired skills to use. They recommended
that future training include a stronger English language
component, as this was the most frequently requested skill
in the hospitality sector where many of the students sought
jobs.
4. (U) Employment opportunities was the most frequent
request from the students and the Iraqi volunteer trainers
who worked with them. The trainers said that poverty was
increasing among the youth and their families. One
Jordanian woman explained that she knew the students turned
their 5 Dinar (USD 7) weekly transportation stipend over to
the family as a source of income and walked to school. The
students said they were able to find work, although at
exploitive salaries and under uncertain conditions. One
student said that she was hired and worked for a company
but was turned out when police came to check for illegal
employees. When she was fired, her employer refused to pay
her the remaining salary and threatened to turn her in if
she insisted.
5. (U) Students also raised the issue of their uncertain
future. After completing training, only seven of the 23
students knew they would be resettled, with four of them
accepted in the U.S. program. All of the other students
expected to remain in Jordan. One young man joked, "I want
to be resettled in Abdoun (an affluent section of Amman)."
The young people asked repeatedly for the opportunity to
study beyond secondary school in either university or
vocational institutions.
6. (U) Comment: Save The Children program graduations
will continue through the end of December 2008 and into the
first week in January 2009. Save The Children will meet
its targets as outlined in the extended cooperative
agreement. The feedback from students indicates the
Ta'leem program was a positive experience, particularly the
training and the resulting community-building. However,
the programming most obviously benefits young people
awaiting resettlement to countries where they can plug into
a welcoming employment and education system.
7. (SBU) Comment continued: The GOJ approved the Save The
Children program with the stipulation that the training not
lead to employment in Jordan. Secondary school-aged young
people represent a significant number of Iraqis in Jordan.
They presently have no access to legal employment or to
further study opportunities. Post continues to press the
GOJ to permit Iraqis to benefit from vocational training,
and the right to legal employment. End comment.
Visit AmmanQs Classified Web Site at
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman
BEECROFT