25.08.2017
According to latest figures, there are over 3.2 million Syrians living in Turkey under temporary protection, with only 10% living in camps. This situation presents number of challenges to the central government, municipalities and local authorities in provision of public services such as healthcare, education and social welfare to both refugees and host community members.
In order to identify the challenges as well as good and innovative practices of Turkish municipalities in strengthening the resilience of communities, institutions and systems with a focus on refugees and host communities, the Qudra Programme, in cooperation with UCLG-MEWA, conducted a field trip in December 2016 to five municipalities with dense refugee populations in Turkey. As the findings of the field trip listed the commendable efforts of Turkish municipalities on managing the influx of refugees, it also displayed the needs and expectations of the visited municipalities. Accordingly, all municipalities indicated their ongoing need for technical and financial support on migration management issues and expressed strong interest in participating at discussion platforms that focus on knowledge, information and best practices exchange on topics related to refugee influx where they can learn from other municipalities in Turkey as well as from their European (partner) cities.
Building on this knowledge and the demand, the Qudra programme initiated a ‘Twin-City Learning Network’ in 2017, which was successfully launched on 24 May 2017 in Ankara, Turkey at the ‘Refugee Friendly Municipalities Conference’. The event took place in cooperation with Engagement Global / Service Agency Communities in One World, and Association for Solidarity with Asylum Seekers and Migrants (SGDD-ASAM), and through the technical support of United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG-MEWA). Approximately 110 participants attended the kick-off conference among which representatives from Turkey’s Directorate General for Migration Management, Delegation of the European Union to Turkey, UN organisations, and 45 municipalities from Turkey and Germany took part.
The conference provided a platform for municipalities in Turkey and Europe to share their best practices and experiences and fostered information exchange and dialogue on issues related to the influx of Syrian refugees and their integration in host communities. Among many other issues discussed at the conference, the necessity but also the challenge of having relevant instruments of participation for refugees in the planning of municipal services gained utmost importance and attention. This is because, despite the latest positive developments in terms of the legal status of refugees both in Turkey and in some European countries, structuration of relevant mechanisms for the effective inclusion of refugees in participation mechanisms continue to pose a challenge. This challenge has many intersecting issues and sub-categories, such as dialogue mechanisms between host communities and newcomers, access to livelihood opportunities, housing, education, health, engagement in decision making/political mechanisms, and social/civic orientation.
3 months after the successful completion of the Refugee Friendly Municipalities Conference, a ‘Peer-to-Peer (P2P) workshop on Refugee Friendly Municipalities and Field Trip’ took place on 12-14 September in Gaziantep, the largest and most populous city in southern Turkey, well-known for hosting the highest number of (registered) Syrian refugees.
Organised jointly by the Qudra programme and SGDD-ASAM, in cooperation with Engagement Global, the workshop and the field trip brought together municipalities and practitioners from Turkey and European countries. The main aim was furthering the learning process of municipality representatives on participatory methods and strategies essential to better involve members of host communities and refugees in the planning processes of municipal services. Also the workshop intended to facilitate the cooperation of attending institutions, learn and exchange best practices with each other and gain an in-depth understanding of the methods and strategies used for better participatory mechanisms. A total of 30 participants attended the workshop, among which six were from European municipalities and eight represented Turkish municipalities.
For more information, send an email to info@qudra-programme.org