North Syria – Zaher Al-Obaido is in search of a new job opportunity in community health among the humanitarian organizations operating in the northwest regions of Syria, where he has more than a decade of experience.
Zaher was working within one of the international organizations active in the area, but he lost his job along with over 100 other employees due to the cessation of projects by the World Food Programme in northern Syria.
In a conversation with Al Jazeera Net, Zaher shared his despair and frustration in securing new employment due to the scarcity of job opportunities and the downsizing of humanitarian organizations' workforce after the halt of their projects in northern Syria.
Zaher states, "Overnight, my life turned upside down. I used to earn a salary of $500, enough to last me till the month's end, and I would assist my brother's family, who lost his life at the hands of the Syrian regime."
More than 100 employees of humanitarian organizations in northern Syria lost their jobs due to the cessation of World Food Programme projects (Al Jazeera).
Negative Repercussions
The significant reduction of support by the World Food Programme in 2024 in northern Syria has resulted in the termination of employment for hundreds of humanitarian organization personnel, causing families to lose their children's income.
Dozens of humanitarian projects came to a halt, directly affecting health, sanitation, and education sectors. Additionally, financial support for internally displaced people was cut by more than half, while some humanitarian organizations shifted their monthly support to every two months.
In this context, a source from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) confirmed to Al Jazeera Net that the program stopped its support for organizations due to reduced funding. The World Food Programme was previously bringing in 260,000 food baskets monthly to northwest Syria regions, along with education and water projects provided by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), benefitting tens of thousands of displaced persons.
The source added that projects for building caravans, sanitation, and garbage removal – all supported by United Nations agencies – have begun to halt following the new cuts.
There are also fears of the situation in the north of the country turning into a disaster and a potential famine in the new year if the reduction of aid continues and organizations withdraw.
In response, the "Syria Response Coordinators" team issued an urgent appeal to cover the humanitarian sectors in the northwest of the country.
The team estimated the sector needs as follows:
- Education sector: $24 million.
- Food security and livelihoods sector: $32 million.
- Health and nutrition sector: $13 million.
- Shelter sector: $32 million.
- Water and sanitation sector: $18 million.
- Protection sector: $1 million.
- Non-food items sector: $9 million.
"Catastrophic Situation"
A source from the team told Al Jazeera Net that the humanitarian situation has become catastrophic and called on all organizations and humanitarian bodies to actively contribute to securing winter needs for displaced people across the camps.
The same source urged for the provision of the necessary services to the most vulnerable groups, repairing previous damage in camps, sanitation networks, and securing the necessary barriers to prevent rainwater from entering tents, as well as paving roads in both new and old camp conglomerates.
With the new year's onset, according to the response team, the price of a standard food basket sufficient to feed a family of five for one month rose to about $98 (2,793 Turkish Lira), an increase of 147 lira compared to last October, consuming 67% of a daily worker's monthly salary after inflation rates in the region rose to 75.04% compared to the previous year.
The percentage of camps suffering from food insecurity has risen to 88.7%, and 95.1% of them struggle to secure bread.
The number of people in need of humanitarian aid reached 4.4 million civilians, an 11% increase from the previous year, with expectations for a rise of 17.3% by the end of the current year due to exchange rate changes, high levels of food prices, and some other materials according to the response team.
More than 70% of families in northern Syria have reduced the number of their main meals (Al Jazeera).
"Immense Shortfall"
Meanwhile, Samer Sulaiman, a resident of a camp in the Ras al-Hosn area, complains about the reduction of humanitarian aid he receives by half. Last year, he received $104 monthly, whereas this month he is down to $65.
Sulaiman told Al Jazeera Net that the families were divided into three categories: the first received $117, the second $104, and the third $52, provided by the "ACTED" organization working in Aleppo's and Idlib's rural areas.
He explained that this year, the organization cut the amount distributed, giving $65 to the first category, between $33 and $52 to the second, and $25 to the third, an insufficient amount for any family's needs for even two days.
Jamil Saloum, a humanitarian worker, noted that the new cuts inspired residents to reduce daily meals and food amounts to afford basic necessities, "a step further into the abyss and increasing the funding gaps in humanitarian response in Syria."
He pointed out that the percentage of households that reduced their main meal count has reached 71.2%, and within the camps, it soared to 93.8%.
Saloum highlighted a massive shortfall in humanitarian response operations without any announcement from the United Nations about funding winter response activities. This indicates the catastrophic repercussions expected on civilians in general and the displaced in camps in particular during the current winter season.
It is noteworthy that dozens of local and international humanitarian organizations working in northwest Syrian regions have halted numerous United Nations-led projects, particularly those related to the World Food Programme, leading to the loss of the only source of livelihood for hundreds of families and an increase in unemployment levels.
