Syrian Arab Republic: Cross-Border Humanitarian Reach and Activities from Türkiye (April 2023)

CONTEXT

The end of April marks nearly three months since the earthquakes first struck Türkiye and Syria. The UN and partners have responded to needs in north-west Syria driven by 12 years of conflict and the impacts of the earthquakes.Against this backdrop, hostilities including shelling and airstrikes continued to be reported this month.

At least 855,000 individuals have had homes damaged by the earthquakes and at least 265,000 individuals had their homes completely destroyed. Some 80,000 individuals in 108 newly established reception centers required a coordinated multi-sectoral response. However, the rapid closing and opening of reception and collective centers was a key challenge for coordination.

By the end of April, more than half a million people have been supported with early recovery interventions including the rehabilitation of key infrastructure, such as schools and health facilities, as well as debris removal. Nearly 500,000 people were reached with multi-cash support since the start of 2023. By the end of April, 275,000 people have been supported with emergency shelters and non-food items since the earthquakes struck. Progress on dignified shelters continued as well with the completion of over 16,000 dignified shelters (out of a target of 63,500) as of 20 April.

Following the cholera vaccination campaign drive in March, a vaccination campaign against polio and measles was launched by the WHO, GAVI and UNICEF on 7 April in partnership with local health NGO partners and the Syria Immunization Group. By 20 April, 92 per cent of polio and 82 per cent of measles vaccination targets were reached. The overall target was to vaccinate 800,000 children.

The UN cross-border aid operation continued without impediment. By the end of April, 1,963 trucks loaded with UN aid had crossed from Türkiye to north-west Syria using three border- crossing since the earthquakes struck. UN cross-border missions continued almost on a daily basis.