ReliefWeb

Executive summary

As of 22 October 2012, there were more than 350,000 Syrian refugees registered or awaiting registration with UNHCR in Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Turkey, as well as an estimated 1.2 million displaced people inside Syria. As displacement continues to grow and UNHCR and its partners estimate the number of refugees in the four main host counties could rise to 710,000 individuals by the end of the year 2012, humanitarian agencies have made specific preparations to assist both refugees and displaced Syrians during the coming winter months.

Owing to the specificity of each hosting country, UNHCR and its partners have developed different plans and strategies in each to cater to the needs of displaced Syrians at risk of being made even more vulnerable, both health-wise and economically, by the start of winter. Each country plan also takes into account the nature of the displacement, with some refugees being hosted in camps and others scattered among local communities in urban areas. Overall, UNHCR’s winter plans aim to reach approximately 500,000 displaced Syrians inside their own country, and 380,000 Syrian refugees in neighbouring countries (an estimated 110,000 in Jordan; 120,000 in Lebanon; 50,000 in Iraq and 100,000 in Turkey). Other operational agencies involved in the humanitarian response for Syrians are targeting additional displaced populations in order to ensure the widest coverage of the needs.

This document provides an overview of UNHCR’s response to the winter needs of displaced Syrians in Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, Turkey as well as inside Syria. These plans are based on assessments of their winter needs by UNHCR and its partners in the field and were prepared in consultation with host governments.

While they were not presented separately within the second revision of the 2012 Syria Regional Response Plan issued in September 2012 (for refugees only), these plans and the requirements attached to them are in fact part of this inter-agency regional response plan, except for those regarding the situation inside Syria.

The following therefore does not constitute a new or amended plan but rather aims to provide more detailed information on how UNHCR and its partners have started assisting displaced Syrians to prepare for winter.