Germany proposes short-term jobs for 500k Syrians

A senior German official says his country proposes creating half a million short-term jobs to help Syrian refugees survive in their overburdened Middle Eastern host countries.

German Minister for Economic Co-operation and Development, Gerd Müller.

Gerd Müller, minister for economic co-operation, told The Associated Press during a Jordan visit on Tuesday that the idea will be raised at next week's Syria aid conference, to be held in London.
Germany could initially contribute $217m to a cash-for-work programme.


Müller says he believes most refugees want to stay close to Syria. He says investing in the region is "20 times more effective" than spending money to help refugees once they've reached Europe.

Hundreds of thousands of Syrians have travelled to Europe, many to Germany, because cuts in international aid created increasingly dire conditions in regional host countries.