The Syrian crisis has created the world’s largest displacement emergency. According to the UNHCR (2020) 6.6 million people have been displaced within Syria and 5.6 million Syrian refugees are registered in Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey and Iraq. Many refugees have been in their host countries for five or more years and a large-scale return of refugees to Syria is unlikely in the short term. Those who return to their homes face the challenge of rebuilding their lives in the context of large-scale destruction of infrastructure and disruption of the social order.

Most refugees, internally displaced people (IDP) and returnees live in host communities; only a small percentage live in dedicated camps. And while host governments and communities have made considerable efforts to support them, the extensive duration of the crisis is placing a strain on the social fabric. Real and perceived competition over access to education, jobs and other basic services is increasing social tensions. Many of those affected by the Syrian and Iraqi crises require specific support to overcome the trauma of displacement.

“Qudra 2 – Resilience for refugees, IDPs, returnees and host communities in response to the protracted Syrian and Iraqi crises” is a regional action co-financed by the EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis, the EU Madad Fund, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) seeking to strengthen resilience for Syrian refugees, IDPs, returnees and host communities in response to the protracted Syrian and Iraqi crises.

Qudra – an Arabic word meaning ‘strength’, ‘ability’ or ‘resilience’. The programme is jointly implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, Expertise France, Spanish Agency for International Development (AECID), Hungarian Interchurch Aid (HIA) and Belgium Development Agency (Enabel) in programme partner countries of Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. All five agencies, by pooling their experience and resources, endeavour to achieve a coherent concept and implementation in order to contribute to a shared European solution to the ongoing refugee crisis in the region.