With the Syria crisis in its ninth year, humanitarian needs remain staggering in terms of scale, severity and complexity, with significant protection risks continuing in a number of areas across the country.
According to the 2019 Syria Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO), some 11.7 million people are still in need of humanitarian assistance, of whom 5 million people are in acute need.
Rapid, safe and unhindered humanitarian access remains challenging. The UN continues to advocate for sustained access for humanitarian actors to provide assistance and protection to all people in need, across the affected area.
Working with Partners and Public Institutions
UNHCR’s main governmental counterpart in Syria is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates (MoFAE). Line ministries essential for UNHCR’s work include the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor (MoSAL), the Ministry of Local Administration and Environment (MoLAE) and the Ministry of Interior (MoI). UNHCR with other UN agencies also maintained its relations with the High Relief Committee and the Coordination Commission on Returns that is chaired by the Minister of MoLAE.
As of end of May, UNHCR has 25 partners including six international NGOs, 17 national NGOs and two government entities (Ministry of Local Administration and Environment and Ministry of Higher Education). The Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) is one of the key humanitarian agencies in Syria that is engaged in various aspects of humanitarian response.
UNHCR’s position as lead agency for both the Protection/Community Service Sector and the Shelter and Non-Food Items (NFI) Sector makes it a key player in the coordination structures and response. The Shelter Sector is co-led by UNHCR and the Ministry of Local Administration and Environment, whereas the NFI Sector is led by UNHCR in close coordination with SARC.
UNHCR will maintain its strategic partnerships with UNICEF, UNFPA, UNDP, WFP, UN HABITAT, WHO, UNRWA and FAO focusing on livelihoods and self-reliance projects.
Along with other UN agencies, UNHCR will increasingly engage with development actors to analyse and assess needs for a smooth reintegration of returnees within the broader recovery and development agenda of these actors should the situation evolve. UNHCR Syria will continue to engage in the inter-agency discussion on a framework which succeeds the 2016-2019 “Strategic Framework for Cooperation between the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic and the United Nations”.
Strategic Directions
According to the 2019 Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO), a total of 11.7 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance, including 6.2 million displaced persons. Some 5 million are in acute need due to a convergence of vulnerabilities resulting from displacement, direct exposure to hostilities, conditions in sites and collective shelters, returns to destroyed and improvised areas and limited access to basic needs and services.
In 2018, 1.6 million population movements were recorded due to simultaneous crises in north-west (Idleb and Afrin), parts of south-west (Dar’a and Quneitra) and eastern Syria (Deir-ez-Zor) including Eastern Ghouta that required massive humanitarian response.
At the same time, self-organized returns of IDPs and refugees from neighbouring countries continue to areas where stability has been restored, hostilities declined or ceased and that have become accessible, requiring an expanded response. Around 1.4 million spontaneous IDP returns were recorded in 2018, with 56,047 Syrian refugees who were registered with UNHCR offices particularly in Lebanon and Jordan returned. As of end of May, 216,200 displaced persons in Syria are estimated to have returned to their homes, while UNHCR recorded 35,509 Syrian refugees having spontaneously returned between January and May 2019. An increase in self-organized returns of refugees during the year is expected. It is noteworthy that the numbers of returnees that are not verifiable in UNHCR database are perceived to be much higher. In 2019, while progress is being made towards safe and dignified return of Syrians, UNHCR is prepared for potential larger-scale voluntary returns.
Based on the above assumptions, and within the framework of the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP), UNHCR’s strategic directions and operational priorities are:
Prepare for and respond to potential influx of IDPs and refugees, as well as returns of IDPs and refugees.
Contribute to fostering an environment for voluntary, dignified, safe and sustainable return of refugees and IDPs with particular focus on support for those who have returned spontaneously and their communities.
Enhance protective environment for refugees and promote innovative solutions shifting from individualized approaches to more community-based interventions.
Strengthen delivery-focused partnerships to achieve the above through interagency and sector coordination fora, including the Special Situations Group (SSG), UN Country Team (UNCT), Humanitarian Country Team (HCT), Return and Reintegration Working Group (RRWG) and Area Humanitarian Country Teams (AHCTs).