Syria experiences the worst famine in recent history
War, drought and rising prices are the triggers of the hunger crisis in Syria.
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Our humanitarian aid in Syria
The vicious conflict in Syria has now been raging for more than 11 years. Since March 2011, the country has been a theatre of war and the suffering does not seem to be abating. Over 600,000 people have lost their lives in the conflict, and an entire generation of children has never known a life of peace. Some 6.9 million people have been displaced internally and about three-quarters of the 6.8 million people who fled abroad live as refugees in neighboring countries. The Syrian war is one of the worst humanitarian crises of our time.
14 million people in Syria are now dependent on humanitarian aid. We have been on the ground through our partners since 2012, providing vital emergency aid.
The people in Syria are urgently dependent on your support!
Our ways of support:
Since the beginning of the Syrian conflict, we have been providing life-saving emergency aid to Syrians in need, especially in the form of medical care. Along with partner organizations on the ground, we operate and support hospitals, primary healthcare centers and mobile medical units. In addition to distributing relief supplies such as blankets, mattresses and hygiene articles, we are ensuring adequate water supply, sanitation and hygiene inside the camps. We also provide psychosocial support.
Years of war, protracted hostilities and multiple displacements have worsened the humanitarian situation and the plight of the people in Syria. Many families have been left without much hope for the future. The trauma is overwhelming. Syria remains one of the largest and most complex crises in the world.
Public health system in the country has collapsed. A huge number of hospitals and medical facilities have been destroyed in the war, energy supplies are inadequate, and there is a shortage of medicines, supplies, and medical personnel.
Many of the displaced people in the Idlib region live in camps and informal settlements. People lack basic supplies such as tents, mattresses, blankets, clean water, food, and medical care.
- Improved access to primary and secondary healthcare
- Improved healthcare for children and mothers
- Rehabilitation of medical facilities and infrastructure
- Improved access to clean water supply, sanitation and hygiene in camps for displaced people
Working closely with our partners Hand in Hand for Aid and Development and Independent Doctors Association, we are committed to improving health care by operating and supporting several hospitals, primary health centers and mobile medical units. Our activities include:
- Outpatient services at primary health centers and hospitals, including general medical check-ups, treatment of malnutrition in children, and vaccination
- Operation and support for specialist hospitals to perform diagnosis procedures and specialist treatments such as emergency medicine, internal medicine, pediatrics, surgery, orthopedics, ear, nose and throat, ophthalmology, neurology and urology
- Support for emergency rooms and surgical health services
- Primary and secondary pediatric and maternal health services, as well as obstetrics, emergency obstetrics and neonatal care
- Operation of an intensive care, thalassemia and dialysis units
- Ambulance services
- Provision of medicines and medical supplies
- Distributing medicines and Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) kits to health facilities
- Psychosocial counseling
- Health education and early detection of diseases and malnutrition
- Capacity strenghtening for healthcare by implementing health data management systems and improvements in stock management
- Covid-19 prevention: Measures in health facilities and triage areas, public awareness on Covid-19 and protective measures.
Inside camps and informal settlements, we are working to provide clean water, distribute hygiene kits to families in need, and ensure adequate waste management. We are also constructing laterines and ensuring that sanitary facilities in good conditions.
Funding institutions: German Federal Foreign Office, Aktion Deutschland Hilft, Nachbar in Not (via Malteser Austria), Seliger Gerhard Stiftung
Malteser International's Syria assistance in pictures
Latest news from Syria:
Stories from Syria:
Yusuf's story
For many Syrian children living with chronic diseases, the war means also coping with the challenge of their unmanaged health problems.
Read Yusuf's story
#MomentsOfHome
"A few days after we fled, I learned that our house had been destroyed during the bombing. They sent me a video of it. When I saw it, I felt so bad," says Iman Al-Mahmoud.
Read more
Face of our work: Batoul
Batoul is a refugee working with Malteser International and helping other refugees from her country deal with their traumatic experiences.
Read her story
Project regions: Aleppo and Idlib
Partners: Independent Doctors Association, Hand in Hand for Aid and Development
Lena Schellhammer
+49 (0)221 9822-7251
Email: lena.schellhammer(at)malteser-international.org
