Highlights
• In Syria UNICEF reached around 139,700 people in 31 hard to reach locations in April with life-saving interventions and critical services, as well as supplies for at least 94,000 beneficiaries in three of the 19 besieged areas.
• UNICEF-supported teacher incentives are scaling up with UNICEF Turkey now supporting nearly 92% of all Syrian volunteer teachers working in Turkey contributing to the education of almost 230,000 Syrian refugee children, while in Iraq 389 teaching and non-teaching staff receive UNICEF incentives benefitting over 14,000 children.
• In Jordan UNICEF-supported WASH services are operational for the estimated 13,000 newly arrived refugees (Mar-May) from the border in Azraq camp, UNICEF partners are beginning children’s activities.
• UNICEF has received 38% of the total US$ 1.16 billion request. However critical gaps remain, including with the UNICEF Whole of Syria response only 33% funded.
Situation Overview & Humanitarian Needs
After over a month of relative quiet under the Cessation of Hostilities (CoH), April saw a surge in violence particularly around Aleppo where air strikes and mortars claimed more than 300 lives across both East and West Aleppo, including health specialists, patients, women and children. Over half a dozen hospitals - including the Al Quds hospital in Southern Aleppo city, the most advanced pediatric care center in Aleppo - ambulances and medical clinics were hit in addition to water pumping stations, at least six schools, religious places and other vital infrastructure. These recent developments temporarily interrupted some of the UNICEF programmes, which have now resumed.
In Aleppo, power supply continues to be disrupted due to the difficulty in repairing the transmission lines of the power plants damaged by the conflict, leaving over 2 million people across the city without drinking water. The pumping station in Bab Alnirab, which supplies an estimated 400,000 people in East Aleppo –was hit for the second time on 29 April, however the pumping station remains operational.
A field visit held by Office of the Special Envoy to Darayya, in the suburbs of Damascus, was the first assessment mission allowed in years. The mission highlighted the grim and alarming situation of children and civilians who lack access to food, medicines and medical care, and suffer from years of continuous bombardments. The UN continues to negotiate with the Government to obtain unimpeded access to the besieged area to carry out technical assessments and deliver life-saving supplies.
In early April, a UN inter-Agency security and program mission was conducted to Palmyra. The city suffered significant damage to civilian infrastructure, including residential areas, health, power, water, and education facilities. The site is in need of extensive mine clearance. UNICEF is contributing, through the humanitarian sectors, to the finalization of the intervention plan for Palmyra and Qaryatin.
The deliberate siege of El Waer neighborhood, Homs (estimated population of 74,000, 44% children), has lasted for two months, with access for civilians and goods denied by local authorities since 12th March, only exempting government civil servants. UNICEF is closely monitoring the situation, as humanitarian needs are rising. El Waer was included in the May inter-agency convoy plan but rejected by the Government.
In Idleb and Ariha, water supply was badly affected as the main water pumping station of the city was cut-off as a result of damage to electricity networks. As a response, UNICEF extended its water trucking operation in the besieged city of Ariha at a rate of about 350,000 litres every day, to benefit around 50,000 people.
Rapidly increasing inflation of the local currency, means that unofficial exchange rates have fallen as low as 625 SYR to 1 USD (a change from the pre-war rate of SYR 47 to 1 USD). This fast depreciation affects the access for Syrians to essential goods, including food and fuel. The fuel price increase is also affecting the provision of public services, i.e. water and electricity.