Center for Civil Society and Democracy (CCSD) issued the following statement on August 29, 2023:
In the last six months, the lives of many people in Syria and Türkiye have been deeply affected by the devastating earthquakes that struck Türkiye and Syria starting on February 6th, 2023.
Marwa, 40 years old, is an internally displaced Syrian woman with four children and a missing husband. She explained,” I have lived through tremendous difficulties; displacement, sieges, and relentless bombings. The earthquake was a devastating experience for me. I lost my home again, and I was worried about losing one of my children. It is good that we have a tent for a year in this camp. With the support I received, I can do my sewing to support my family in these trying times.”
Through the support of CCSD, local civil society groups and organizations contributed to reducing human suffering and increasing solidarity among the local communities. CCSD initiated our emergency local response campaign, #Together, where we focused on addressing the immediate needs of families affected by the earthquake, including shelter, food, water, heat, livelihoods, and economic recovery. CCSD extended its focus to encompass the needs of our diverse local civil society partners, including women groups in Türkiye and Northwest Syria, as they serve their respective local communities.
During the six-month phase after the earthquake, CCSD supported nineteen organizations in Türkiye across 14 cities affected by the earthquake. We have provided direct support for more than 30988 individuals and 7747 families. In Northwest Syria, CCSD supported eighteen groups and organizations in 10 different areas and three camps. We have provided direct support to more than 25740 individuals and 6435 families. CCSD is offering professional MHPSS support for all our frontline partners and also in-person psycho-social support for the local communities where they work.
In consultation with our local partners, CCSD will focus on the second phase of our response campaign to the earthquake for six months in the following areas:
1- Continue to support local groups and organizations (from Phase 1) and support some new organizations. This support covers their basic day-to-day operating expenses, MHPSS for their staff and volunteers. It also incorporates support to design and implement micro-programming in Northwest Syria, which will help create economic opportunities for the local communities.
2- Support for gender-sensitive interventions that will help women’s groups and organizations respond to women’s needs and priorities identified by women—for example, safe spaces for women and women facilities in the camps.
3- Support for social cohesion projects led by IDPs and refugees cooperating with their host communities.
With your support, CCSD will continue this work. Your contribution is tax-deductible, and 95% of all donations provided go to the emergency local response campaign.
After more than six months of the earthquake, we are truly committed to supporting our local civil society partners that are supporting our local communities to overcome the medium and long-term consequences of the devastating earthquake. With our local civil society partners in Syria and Türkiye, we have the necessary access to provide medium and long-term flexible responses based on local needs.
