Centers
FEATURING niScvt CentersS
BOURJ AL BARAJNEH CENTER
Location:
Burj Al-Barajneh camp is located in the center of the Southern suburb of Beirut, a distance of one kilometer from Beirut airport.
History:
Burj Al-Barajneh camp was established in 1950, the majority of the camp inhabitants originate from three villages in the vicinity of the city of Acre in Palestine: Tarshiha, Al-Kanbri and Kuaikayt. They settled in this camp between the years 1950-1951 and constitute 80% of the population. The other 20% came from very small villages in addition to 8,000 people from Sha'ab, whom were evacuated from Baalbek to Burj Al-Barajneh in 1961. This camp has a special characteristic; the population of each of the three Palestinian villages occupies a specific area of land in an attempt to replicate the layout of their original villages in Palestine, they have their own quarters, streets and alleys named after the original villages and the inhabitants live their lives by old Palestinian traditions.
Camp Conditions
I. Social Condition:
Burj Al-Barajneh, like other camps has been subjected to enormously tragic events which added to the poverty and deteriorating living conditions has resulted in grossly sub-standard living conditions.
The area of the camp was never extended to meet its population growth, therefore due to the need of additional housing; people have been obliged to add several floors atop ageing structures despite often unsound structural foundations. Currently the number of inhabitants is approximately 18,000 occupying 2,800 houses.
Electricity is available from five stations providing power to the five areas of the camp, in addition to three generators which pump the water from the artesian wells. However, the electric cables are installed in a very dangerous way, over-hanging and crisscrossing like a spider's web with no maintenance provided to prevent accidents.
Utility water comes from the artesian wells, but these provide salty water in addition to this the covering net of the well is very old and receives no maintenance; a situation which has resulted in many health problems. Therefore drinking water must be purchased to avoid sickness, by people who can ill-afford it.
The economic situation is as stark as other camps. Inside the camp there are small shops, bakeries and modest apprentice workshops. The camp greatly needs to develop its housing, infrastructure and health conditions in addition to developing income generating projects.
II. Educational Conditions:
Eight schools provide educational services for the students of Burj Al-Barajneh:
• Six elementary schools working on double shifts
• Two intermediate schools, one for girls and one for boys.
• Al-Jalil secondary school serving all Beirut camps.
All of theses schools are not situated within the camp but the vicinity of it. Inside the camp there are eleven kindergartens run by different NGOs.
III. Housing conditions:
People are reliant upon health services provided by the UNRWA general clinic and PRCS hospital. However, major operations and chronic illnesses are not included in the services of these two providers.
Beit Atfal Assomoud Center:
Burj El-Barajneh center was established in the year 1985 to serve the families and children whom lost their primary financial provider during the civil war and the massacres against the Palestinian people. The center is located near to Haifa Hospital.
Services:
The center provides the following services for orphaned children and others from families categorized as hardship cases:
• Sponsorship for 150 children within 79 families
• For the children: educational, cultural and recreational activities plus remedial classes for the some students
• For the youth: cultural, sports and art activities, summer camps, access to library service and scholarships for vocational training
• Scouts groups and folk dancing groups, including the Dabkeh
• A kindergarten that provides services for children between 3-6 years of age.
• A class for girls with special needs.