Minister of State for Trade and Development Joe Costello arrived in Jordan to visit a Syrian refugee camp to assess how Irish Aid support is being used in the area.
Mr Costello will visit the Za’atari refugee camp which provides shelter to over 7,000 refugees later today.
Speaking ahead of his visit he said some €500,000 in Irish Aid funding has been approved “to provide immediate relief within Syria and to assist those forced to flee.”
“Over 202,000 refugees have fled Syria and an additional 1.2 million are internally-displaced. The purpose of my visit is to assess the humanitarian situation and needs on the ground and to demonstrate Ireland’s solidarity with those most affected by the devastating conflict in Syria,” he added.
Mr Costello will also meet with UN Aid agency coordinators, the Red Cross and Crescent, and senior representatives of the Jordanian government.
Humanitarian access and the security of aid workers is a serious concern for Irish Aid, he said.
“All parties to the conflict must fully respect international humanitarian law and ensure that humanitarian organisations agencies are granted immediate and safe access to those most in need,” Mr Costello added.
Latest United Nations figures estimate there are over 2.5 million people in need in Syria and over 202,000 refugees in neighbouring countries, with Jordan hosting nearly 50,000 of them.
Nearly 20,000 people have been killed since the uprising began in March 2011.