Syrian Refugee Crisis

How You Can Help

Your support funds vital humanitarian work in Syria. Whether giving critical emergency aid, providing temporary shelter, rebuilding lives at home or offering education and vocational training, your donation helps refugees to live with autonomy, dignity, and hope.

UNHCR is funded by direct, voluntary contributions and our donors enable us to help refugees all over the world.

Taking Action

• The 2018-2019 Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (3RP), led by UNHCR, will support over 5 million refugees in neighbouring countries and four million in the communities hosting them.

• The 2017 Syria Humanitarian Response Plan will provide humanitarian support and protection to 13.5 million people inside Syria.

Together, we can make a difference.

Life in Syria

Those left behind in Syria are often struggling to survive as they face daily hardships and the looming threat of violence. Millions have been trapped in besieged cities, turned away from closed borders, or cut off from escape routes by regional outbreaks of violence.

The UN estimates that 13.5 million Syrian civilians are living in extreme poverty and are in desperate need of humanitarian aid (from the UN Syrian Arab Republic Humanitarian Response Plan).

Unemployment has skyrocketed, prices of staples like bread and milk have more than doubled in the past year, and access to basic necessities is often impossible. In order to survive, some communities have resorted to extreme measures such as drinking unsafe water and eating grass.

UNHCR in Syria

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, leads international action to protect people forced to flee their homes due to conflict and persecution. UNHCR Canada plays a vital role supporting this work in Syria and worldwide.

In 2017, UNHCR provided vital aid to Syrian refugees and IDPs including building life-saving shelter and the distribution of food, water, and basic necessities in dangerous conflict zones.

UNHCR has the largest humanitarian presence on the ground in Syria and works with more than 200 partners. Where possible, we work with governments and local organizations to empower and support refugees and citizens. Together, we deliver emergency aid, protect the rights and well-being of internally displaced persons, and help civilians to build a better future.

With your support, we can continue this vital work.

Child Refugees & Internally Displaced Children

The Syrian conflict is now in its seventh year with no end in sight. 

Child refugees are one of the most vulnerable and isolated groups in the world. In a recent study, the UN found that nearly 30% of the Syrian children they interviewed went outside their homes—often a crammed apartment or a makeshift shelter—just once a week or less. Many have been wounded physically, psychologically, or both; they are experiencing homelessness, hardship and death at an extremely vulnerable age.

Thanks to the efforts of host countries, UNHCR and international partners and donors, there has been positive progress in access to basic education for Syrian refugees. However, many have missed months or years of learning and thousands are still not in school.  

“The world must act to save a generation of traumatised, isolated and suffering Syrian children from catastrophe. If we do not move quickly, this generation of innocents will become lasting casualties of an appalling war.”  – Angelina Jolie, UNHCR Special Envoy

Life for Syrian Refugees

War and human rights abuses have forced over 5.6 million people—mostly women and children—to flee their homes in Syria. Families have left everything behind to make the dangerous journey to safety.

Neighbouring countries are doing everything they can to provide shelter and assistance for those in need, but refugees face mounting difficulties in accessing food, housing, medical care, and other basic needs for their families.

• There are over 3.5 million refugees in Turkey alone. Employment opportunities are limited, and many have exhausted their savings and are struggling to survive in overcrowded camps and cities.
  
• In Jordan, 93% of refugees fall below the national poverty line. Many families cannot access basic nutrition: only 20% of households report eating fruit at least once per week. 

Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Syria

Internally displaced persons (or IDPs) are people forced to flee their homes who have remained in their own country. In Syria, at least 6.6 million people have been displaced—the highest number in the world. As conflict spreads in Syria, many internally displaced families will be forced to flee multiple times.

Unlike refugees, internally displaced persons are not protected under international law, making them one of the world’s most vulnerable groups. UNHCR has a mandate to protect IDPs and provides essential support for the families, women, and children who remain behind in Syria.

Some refugees and IDPs are also stateless. Because they do not have an official nationality, they are unable to access basic services like healthcare or employment in the country where they live. UNHCR is committed to protecting and supporting stateless people in Syria and worldwide.

“Finding out that there are people out there who are willing to help is what truly gave me the willpower to go on. Now I am optimistic for a better future for my children.” – Momena, Syrian hairdresser mother of three, living in Damascus.

Syrian Refugee Camps

A refugee camp is a temporary settlement built to house refugees. Over half a million Syrian refugees live in camps, the largest of which is the Za’atari refugee camp in Jordan. It hosts nearly 100 000 refugees, the majority of whom are women and children.

After seven years of conflict, refugee camps have become home to thousands of Syrian families. Help UNHCR to supply camps with basic necessities like healthcare services, sanitation, and education.

Women in Refugee Camps

Despite near constant struggle, women lead one of every four refugee households and are holding their families together against all odds. Learn more about the extraordinary strength of Syria’s refugee women in Woman Alone: The Fight for Survival by Syria’s Refugee Women.

Alternative to Camps

Refugee camps often serve as a focal point for aid and international attention. However, they are a temporary solution.

Outside of camps, millions of Syrian refugees have settled on land or in housing that they own, rent, or occupy informally in rural and urban areas. UNHCR supports these alternatives to camps as they allow refugees the possibility to gain self-sufficiency and live with greater dignity, independence and normality as members of the local community.

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