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Since January 2013, more than half a million displaced Syrians have received emergency relief from the Danish Refugee Council in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Iraq. The situation in and around Syria is the largest humanitarian crisis the world is facing at the moment, and it is constantly necessary to develop new solutions.
The war in Syria has forced 1,5 million Syrians to seek refuge in the neighboring countries and more than four million people are internally displaced in Syria. The Danish Refugee Council is a central humanitarian actor in Syria and the neighboring countries Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Iraq.
”The war in Syria is very serious, and the civilians suffer severely both inside and outside the borders. We are under pressure to find new solutions and reach more people with emergency relief. We have constantly been forced to develop new answers to the challenges, we are facing,” says head of International Department in Danish Refugee Council, Ann Mary Olsen.
Traditional emergency relief as blankets, clothes, hygiene kits, establishing shelters in public buildings and water and sanitation are still a central part of DRC’s emergency effort but the unstable security situation and the massive number of displaced means that it is necessary to launch new initiatives all the time.
”In Lebanon, the many refugees from Syria seek shelter in private families and we have developed a shelter solution which works as an extension of the private houses. We have also introduced relief aid consisting of small cash grants which allow displaced families to prioritize their needs. The many battles in Syria means that safety in schools cannot be guaranteed, and DRC is working to train children how to behave if evacuation of a school is necessary – and we continuously evaluate the situation, so we can respond to the greatest needs,” says Ann Mary Olsen.
Even though the situation is acute and constantly changes, DRC also works with a focus on durable solutions.
”Our effort in the conflict affected areas of the world has expanded over many years, and we know from our experience that acute relief aid cannot stand alone. We are already working towards durable solutions for Syrian refugees and social efforts include for instance of education, apprenticeships and training in our Lebanon community centers for the Syrian refugees,” says Ann Mary Olsen.
DRC’s emergency efforts include among other things distribution of mattresses, blankets and clothes to more than 300,000 people inside Syria in Damascus, Homs, Dara’a, Dier e Zor and Aleppo; the distribution of hygiene kits, diapers, blankets and food- and fuel coupons to more than 150,000 people in Northern and Southern Lebanon and Bekaa and the distribution of more than 10,000 clothing kits to refugees in Za’atari camp in Jordan and at the Syrian border.
