Syria Humanitarian Fund Annual Report 2018

2018 IN REVIEW

This Annual Report presents information on the key achievements of the Syria Humanitarian Fund in 2018. The results reporting is divided into two:

1. Results achieved through allocations launched in 2018. As only after the submission and approval of final narrative reports results appear in the reporting system, the achievements for 2018 allocations can appear low as the reporting process is ongoing. For the most updated information on 2018 allocations it is therefore advised to consult the GMS business Intelligence: https://gms.unocha.org/BI

2. Results reported in 2018 include achievements from allocations whose implementation phase started prior to 2018 but which submitted their final narrative reports approved between 1 January 2018 – 31 January 2019.

Throughout the report results from 2018 allocations are presented in blue and results reported in 2018 from prior periods are presented in orange. Contribution recorded based on the exchange rate when the cash was received which may differ from the Certified Statement of Accounts that records contributions based on the exchange rate at the time of the pledge.

HUMANITARIAN CONTEXT

Life-threatening needs among the most vulnerable in 2018

After eight years into the crisis, civilians continued to bear the negative effects of the conflict marked by large-scale human suffering, displacements, physical destruction and most importantly loss of lives. At the end of 2018, 11.7 million people were in need of humanitarian assistance. An estimated 6.2 million people remained internally displaced, with well over 1.6 million population movements recorded between January and December 2018. Close to 1.4 million displaced people reportedly returned home spontaneously during the same period with a majority estimated to have been displaced for relative short duration. The UN estimates that 25 per cent of IDPs are women of productive age, and 4 per cent are pregnant women that require sustained maternal health care services including emergency obstetric care. It is estimated that a third of population in Syria is food insecure with pockets of acute and chronic malnutrition persisting in some areas. Outbreaks of measles, acute bloody diarrhea, typhoid fever and leishmaniosis were reported throughout the year. Palestine refugees in Syria have remained particularly vulnerable, affected by displacement, loss of assets, and significant destruction of residential areas.

Protection needs of civilians

Syria remains a protection crisis, with civilians exposed to multiple protection risks related to ongoing hostilities. Despite a reduction in hostilities in parts of Syria in the country, 2018 saw intense fighting in several locations including East Ghouta in Damascus governorate, parts of southern Damascus, the southwest (particularly Dar’a and Quinetra), much of the north west, including Idleb governorate, and Afrin district in Aleppo governorate, and Eastern Deir-ez-Zor governorate. In many cases, hostilities had an immediate impact on the lives of civilians, causing death and injury, large-scale displacement, damage to property and civilian infrastructure. The protection of humanitarian and medical personnel has continued to be a key concern. More than one-in-three schools are damaged or destroyed. Millions of people are exposed to explosive hazards, including in areas in which fighting has ceased and where multiple layers of contamination continue to threaten the lives of civilians. Gender based violence continues to affect the lives of women and girls. Elderly people living with disabilities are also among the most vulnerable requiring protection. The lack and loss of civil documentation, common throughout areas affected by hostilities and displacement, are a barrier to exercise housing, land and property (HLP) rights. It also triggers restrictions on freedom of movement and affects access to services.

The IDPs, notably women, children, minorities, child- and femaleheaded households continued to live in crowded settlements, exposed to protection risks, such as forced evictions, discrimination based on status, child rights violations and child labour, family separation and gender-based violence (GBV).

This came on top of limited access to protective shelter, safe water and sanitation facilities as well as other basic needs. Safety and security of children and women continued to be of particular concern, with elevated risks of family separation, rape and other types of gender-based violence and prevalence of child-headed households due to drought-related displacement.

Security and access constraint

The humanitarian crisis was further compounded by the insecure operating environment. A combination of accessrelated constraints continued to impede the ability of humanitarian partners particularly NNGOs to reach people in need in a timely manner.

Access to livelihoods and essential basic services

Close to eight years into the crisis, the resilience capacity of people in the most affected communities in Syria has been eroded. Essential basis services are widely lacking, including health, shelter, food, education, water and sanitation. In 2015, 83 percent of Syrians lived below the poverty line, and recent indications the situation has worsened. People in Syria are adopting negative coping strategies due to the loss or lack of sustained livelihoods and are increasingly vulnerable to displacement. This has led to harmful coping strategies such as reduced food consumption; delay in seeking necessary medical care; reduced hygiene practices; increasing public health risk and the spending of savings and accumulation of debt.

Such coping strategies are not only damaging and unsustainable but also increase exposure to more harmful practices such as child labour including early marriages.

Humanitarian Response Plan

• 11.7M People in Need
• People Targeted: 9M Direct Services; 11.7M Service Delivery
• $3.33 Billion Funding Requirement