The Impact of The Earthquakes on Syria

PC: CCSD

It’s hard to know where to begin when writing about the earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria on Monday February 6th. The media has been abuzz with updates, statistics and response efforts. However, over the past few days, the news cycle seems to be moving forward. Currently, the death toll is estimated at over 36,000 people – a number that most of us cannot even fathom. To help conceptualize this, it would be the equivalent of losing the student population of over 70 US high schools in just one week. 

Undoubtedly it will take years to rebuild all of the infrastructure that has been lost. For the embattled territories of Northwest Syria, the earthquake is added to a decade of conflict, obstruction of aid and displacement. There are more than 4 million Syrians depending on aid from the UN and other NGOs and whilst aid to Turkey has greatly increased in the wake of the earthquake, the border situation in Syria has left the Northwest territories with even less humanitarian support. Due to objections from the Russian and Syrian governments, the only route into Syria is by crossing through Turkey. At this time, a UN resolution in place only allows UN agencies to cross the border and provide aid. Outside of these agencies, the folks on the ground, living in Syria are the only people able to provide aid to those in need. For this reason, it is absolutely crucial that we funnel funding toward Syrian based NGOs. Any other solutions to this issue will require widespread political pressure in order to open borders and bring relief. 

Rockflower Partner, Center for Civil Society and Democracy, is one such organization based in Syria working to help with recovery and displacement. On February 6th they issued a statement explaining the devastation and documenting their urgent needs. These include people to help with rescue operations, medical personnel and supplies, food, water and blankets, temporary shelters fit for cold weather, communication support, funding for organizations supporting women and mental health support for those affected. 

We have been in touch with CCSD, and their team told us, “The needs are huge, people have lost family and friends, many people have lost all their possessions including paperwork and many homes are unsafe to enter. CCSD’s support is structured and prioritized around a few key areas: humanitarian assistance (tents, food, water, hygiene kits, support for burials), logistical and coordination support, communication assistance (internet support), and psychosocial support.  The weather continues to be extremely cold. Much more help is needed for shelter (tents and blankets) and heat (wood burning stoves or electric heaters), many people are still on the streets. The most vulnerable – children, people with disabilities, and women need more focused support. Children need jackets and warm clothes.  Families with homes intact have taken in IDPs (internally displaced persons) and they need support.”

Despite the global narrative moving forward, Syrians are suffering and they are not receiving anything close to adequate resources to help them recover from this disaster. A recent tweet from Omar D. Foda (@EgyptsBeer) resonates strongly, “People living in the Middle East are not some special species that becomes more immune to tragedy the more they experience it. They are humans who are suffering at levels that are almost inconceivable. To believe otherwise is to justify your cold indifference.” Please make it a priority to support Syrian based organizations like CCSD as they work on the ground, leading recovery efforts.

Technology Has Proven to be Essential During this Pandemic, but How Do We Make Sure to Reach Those Women Who Lack Both Skills & Access?

Social distancing and remote work have become the norm as the world grapples with solutions to the COVID-19 pandemic. Collectively, our reliance on technology is greater than ever before and yet many still lack access to the most basic forms of equipment, knowledge and expertise. Many Syrian women face considerable roadblocks to meaningful and impactful participation in society, and having limited or no access to technology exacerbates the isolation and further impacts women’s labor force participation negatively.

The Center for Civil Society and Democracy have long been working to improve this technological gap. In March at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Rockflower partnered with them on a pilot project, Supporting Syrian Women to Have Access to Technology. The two main goals of this project were: to provide Syrian women with equipment and to train them to be digitally literate. Not only did the project achieve those objectives, but it also created a safe and supportive environment and expanded networks for women to stay connected during a trying time for so many.

The pilot project began by identifying 10 Syrian women living in Turkey to participate. First, they joined a WebEx group session to learn more about technology. A consultative approach was taken in the form of one-on-one online sessions between CCSD staff and the 10 participants to formulate what was needed most, which lead to the final decision on what the main projects would constitute.

Each participant received twelve 2 hour sessions, in which the topics included: the importance of technology, navigating the Internet, social media platforms, Microsoft Word and Excel application features and mentorship on final projects.

Four laptops were distributed to women who completed a satisfactory needs assessment and did not have regular access to a laptop. This pilot project found that Syrian women in Turkey have access to the Internet on their phones, but to provide greater economic empowerment computers are critically important.

The pilot project was a vital starting point to build on a program that will prove to be extremely beneficial for a number of Syrian women living in Turkey. These training sessions have already resulted in a job offer for one of the participants, a support network for the women involved, both professionally and personally, an increase in their confidence and knowledge and of course, the acquisition of new skills.

New developments for the continuation of the program have also occurred, including splitting the course into knowledge levels, the addition of courses such as Turkish language tutoring and project management, and flexible times to allow for maximum participation.

The next steps for the program are to distribute more laptops and work on the next round of courses. Rockflower looks forward to continuing to work with CCSD to make this a reality.

Participants and Training Facilitators during the Presentation of their Learnings for the Entire Program - August 2020

Slides from the E-Government Presentation

Rockflower Partners with Center for Civil Society and Democracy

Rockflower is pleased to announce a new partnership with the Center for Civil Society and Democracy.

The Center for Civil Society and Democracy (CCSD) works to support a tolerant and inclusive democracy for Syria where there is respect for diversity, justice, equality, and freedom for all Syrians.

Many Syrian women face roadblocks to participate in society in a meaningful and impactful way and with the impact of COVID-19, having limited or no access to technology exacerbates the isolation and further impacts women’s labor force participation negatively. Digital literacy has been proven as a factor that improves women’s access to employment opportunities where providing useful and applied skills can build confidence and create more opportunities for women. CCSD is launching the Supporting Syrian Women to Have Access to Technology project as an initiative and plans to expand this effort in order to create a platform for a concerted effort towards closing gender gaps in digital literacy as the world moves faster and faster towards online communication.