IKEA to create jobs for Syrian refugees

IKEA has announced plans to create jobs for Syrian refugees displaced by the civil war in the country.

The furniture retail giant plans to sell a new line of rugs and textile made by Syrian refugees in 2019 to generate new employment opportunities.

The Swedish multinational company will provide jobs for hundreds of jobs for refugees currently living in Jordan.

Ikea’s range and supply manager Jesper Brodin told CNN that Jordan has taken on a great responsibility in hosting displaced refugees, adding that the current situation in Syria is a major tragedy.

“We decided to look into how IKEA a can contribute,” Brodin stated.

According to the United Nations, more than 655,000 refugees from Syria are registered in Jordan. Jordan also promised to issue up to 200,000 work permits for Syrians last year, allowing them to work legally in the country.

Ikea’s latest move is not its first into the refugee crisis. Last year’s prestigious Beazley competition awarded a flat-pack refugee shelter, designed by Ikea in cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), with “the design of the year” prize.

Thousands of these shelters, which were intended to last for around three years, were sent to different humanitarian crisis points around the world saving refugees from freezing temperatures in Europe last year.