The Refugee Question in the Middle East: Towards Sustainable Solutions

COVID-19 has drastically worsened conditions for refugee populations and the internally displaced around the world and particularly in the Middle East and North Africa region, which, according to the latest report by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Center and UNHCR, houses an estimated 12.4 million internally displaced and more than 6 million refugees. Host countries in the region including Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey have had to grapple with a double responsibility in this pandemic context; responsibility towards refugees (Syrian, Iraqi, and Yemeni) and responsibility towards host communities. The lingering conflicts in Syria, Yemen and Libya coupled with international donor fatigue further compound the displacement challenge in the region, threatening regional security on the political, economic and most importantly the human levels. With donor fatigue mounting and diverted to mitigate the impacts of the pandemic, and cash assistance inevitably threatened, there is an urgent need to move beyond humanitarian support and toward sustainable human development in the current context.

On the occasion of the World Refugee Day, the Middle East Program and the Atlantic Council IN TURKEY are pleased to invite you to join a panel which will highlight regional voices about the challenges refugees are facing in the region, with a focus on Syrian women, youth and children, together with practitioners in the field who understand what strategies have worked so far to address the displaced people’s needs beyond the basic humanitarian packages including the capacity of host communities to strengthen resilience and promote social cohesion. Women and children, many of which are orphaned, are particularly vulnerable, together representing over half the displaced across the region. Protecting and advancing their developmental needs including their right to education and to pursue dignified work is especially challenging, leaving them with an uncertain future.

Since 2019, MEP has hosted policy discussions focused on changing the narrative of displacement from one that focuses solely on short term crisis management to long-term solutions that sees this challenge as an opportunity for human development.

Atlantic Council IN TURKEY has been working on providing policy recommendations on Turkey’s refugee response, Syrian refugees’ economic and social inclusion in the country as well as Syrian women empowerment through in-depth research and high-level policy discussions.