Ziad has been teaching IT skills to both Syrian refugees and Lebanese youth for more than a year now. Although challenging, Ziad is happy to witness that the seeds he sows grow into tangible skills which help students get a job. This initiative is one of many similar projects implemented through the LEADERS project. Click on more to watch his video
Nasreen and Rayna, from Akkar, Lebanon, share a common goal to foster solidarity between refugees and local communities. They believe that social cohesion and dialogue are best channelled through arts and media. Within the FURSA project, they organise creative activities to strengthen the exchanges between Syrian and Lebanese youth. Click on More to watch their video
Mr. Hani Abo Zainab from Al Reaya explained that: “the process of human development is the building block for a nation’s progress". Speaking on behalf of the EU, Mr. Rein Nieland, emphasized that the milestone being celebrated is particularly important to the EU, as it puts young people at the centre of community life. He added "Young people are the heart of society. The rehabilitated centre is not just a space; it is a platform for youth engagement in public life".
The Youth RESOLVE consortium, funded by the Trust Fund with the cooperation of AL Reaya, Civil Association Union and UN Habitat opened a community centre end of September in Saida. The community centre will serve as a space for thousands of the most vulnerable children and youth from all backgrounds. Several activities are planned to build capacity and strengthen social cohesion amongst the various communities living side by side in Old Saida and surrounding areas.
This is the story of Riham, Jordanian, and Zeinab, Syrian, who met during a cooking training and immediately formed a strong bond of friendship. The two women decided to become business partners and they set shop in Riham’s kitchen, which was expanded thanks to EU help. Despite all the changes this past year, Riham losing her husband, Zeinab moving away and the business slowing down due to the pandemic, these women will always be there for each other as their friendship has helped them get through many difficulties and heartaches.
Farid, 12, is a member of the Dom community and he is one of Ayat’s students. He lives with his mother Norah and his siblings in a tent, and sometimes he cannot attend classes because he has to work in order to provide for his family. Their financial situation is dire. Life in a tent, especially in the winter is everything but easy. However, Farid feels safe and he is happy to be able to go to school. He is very active, he loves writing on the board and helps his teacher when other children are misbehaving.
A group of youth activists from the EUTF supported ‘Youth Resolve’, led by World Vision, and Master Students of the ‘EDU-Syria’, led by the German Jordanian University, projects travelled to Brussels to actively participate in the Conference on 12-14 March. They testified at the opening plenary of the conference and delivered key messages calling for greater participation of youth in local decision-making processes, and continued support to education and job creation. Bushra Abyad from EDU-Syria gave a keynote speech at the official Conference dinner dedicated to Syrian women hosted by EU High Representative Federica Mogherini.
It was also displayed during the Brussels III Conference “Supporting the Future of Syria and the Region” in March simultaneously at the European Parliament and at the EU Delegation to the United Nations in New York. The Exhibition raises awareness on this lasting crisis and delivers important messages of EU solidarity and support to Syria and the region. It also shows that people on the ground are strong and determined actors of their lives in their own right.
The EUTF exhibition "Faces of Resilience: From Syria and the Region" by photographer Johanna de Tessières displays portraits and personal stories of those whose lives have been irrevocably impacted by the Syrian crisis. It is currently hosted at the EU Delegation to the US in Washington D.C. and was opened in the margins of the Spring Meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
Ayat is an English facilitator at the UNICEF's Makani (“my place”, in Arabic) centre in the Al Rajeeb Community, which serves the most vulnerable children from the area: the Dom community (around 2,000 people of which 60% are children and mothers), as well as Kurds and Syrians. To tackle early marriage and child labour, Al Rajeeb center raises awareness on how important education is for children, while offering families support services such as child protection, early childhood programmes, life skills and innovation labs, and awareness lessons for parents. With time, the idea that children have the right to education has become more embedded in parents’ minds.
On top of normal classes, Palestinian refugee children attend support lessons to compensate for the educational gaps brought about by the crisis. Life is hard for Sabah and her children but with the financial aid and in-kind services they receive, they are able to lead a semi-normal life far from home. Sabah, who remains concerned about their future, is thankful that her children are given the chance to attend school and get an education.
Mona fled Syria with her two twin sons Ezziddine and Mahmoud. They found purpose by volunteering with the Red Crescent. Thanks to the support from the EU Trust Fund, and through the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, awareness-raising health campaigns are organised in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey. Click on More to watch their video
Mariam, 11, is a Palestine refugee from Syria and has been living in the Zarqa camp, Jordan, for the past three years. Fearing for the safety of her 8 children, Sabah, Mariam's mother, decided to join her family in the Zarqa camp of Jordan and has been benefitting from the services offered by UNRWA with the support of the Trust Fund, including cash assistance, education, healthcare and protection.
The Danish Red Cross, one of the Trust Fund implementing partners, set-up a virtual reality experience next to the outside exhibition enabling participants to travel to the region where they could meet refugees, who explain their situation and show the virtual visitor their daily life.
Beyond panel discussions, the event displayed a multi-media exhibition, including photographs and video screenings showcasing the EUTF supported projects, as well as a market place for implementing partners. The event was concluded with a public concert given by Syrian, Iraqi, Palestinian and Belgian musicians. Please visit the photo gallery of the conference and evening concerts as well as to check out the video of the event, available here both in English and in Arabic.
Sherin Ali from Duhok, Kurdistan region of Iraq, delivered her baby at the Dohuk Maternity very prematurely. The region’s public health infrastructures are struggling to cope with the massive increase of patients. Through the EU Trust Fund’s supported project led by AISPO, the Duhok neonatal care unit received new equipment and training. Click on More to watch her video
At the Domiz Camp, the largest Syrian refugee camp in the Dohuk area, in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, many people risk their lives almost every day because of mines and explosive devices. The Trust Fund partnered up with the Mines Advisory Group (MAG) to help people living in contaminated areas identify the dangerous devices, avoid accidents and report back to MAG’s demining team to clean the area and make it safe for people. Click on More to see the video
This is the story of a young Kurdish boy detained in a juvenile detention centre in Dohuk, following a fight he had with a classmate. Physical activity is an essential part of rehabilitation for the young boys living in the centre and who, one day, will be sent back to their communities. GIZ, with the support of the European Union via the Trust Fund, has rehabilitated the football field where the young men spend a lot of their time. Click on More to watch this story
Al Ramtha Hospital is the only hospital in the governorate of Irbid and it serves around 240,000 people, including 70,000 Syrian refugees. The hospital had to be expanded to respond to the needs of the growing population and of emergency care. Thanks to the support of the EU via the Regional Trust Fund a new Emergency Care Unit was built by UNOPS to help relieve the pressure and offer better and faster medical care. Click on More to read this story
REBAHS, led by IMC and funded by the EU via the Regional Trust Fund, is a project that focuses on primary healthcare, community healthcare and mental health. It reaches vulnerable local communities and Syrian refugees who benefit from the ‘flat-fee model’: a provision of subsidised medical services at supported Primary Health Care centres. Click on More to watch Sahar’s and Hiam’s stories, two women who come to one of the centres.
