Syria earthquake. Over 11,000 people received help in Aleppo, thanks to AICS

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15-09-2023 | di COOPI

Syria earthquake. Over 11,000 people received help in Aleppo, thanks to AICS

After a 7.8-magnitude earthquake hit the area of northern Syria on Feb. 6, causing enormous damage to the Syrian population, COOPI – Cooperazione Internazionale took immediate action and, thanks to funding from the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS), was able to launch the project "Multi-sectoral emergency and early recovery support for the most vulnerable population” on March 16.

The 6-month project intended to address two essential needs: providing assistance in food security and ensuring the Protection of vulnerable groups for 11,613 people. Both activities took place in and out of emergency shelters to reach out to people waiting for refuge as well.

The food security activity was developed as follows:

  • identification of the extent of needs and beneficiaries, following the “Do Not Harm” approach;
  • distribution of food baskets to 388 vulnerable households affected by the earthquake every 5 days for 3 months (the food baskets contained cheese, fava beans, hummus, tuna, oil, and other canned food for a daily intake of the necessary calories per person;
  • post-distribution monitoring to assess beneficiaries' appreciation of the food baskets.

Protection activities for the most vulnerable consisted of:

  • preliminary needs analysis in terms of protection according to the “Do Not Harm” approach;
  • psychosocial support and recreational activities in individual or group form
  • special case management in the areas of child protection, gender-based violence, elderly or disability for a total of 160 people;
  • distribution of more than 2972 dignity kits for 1401 households (soap, sanitary products, toothbrush toothpaste and shampoo, as well as blankets, flashlight and hand sanitizer and other basics.) to women and men, including adolescents, in the project target areas.

Coopi has been operating in Syria since 2016 in the areas of rural Damascus, Dara'a, Hama, Homs, Raqqa, Lattakia and Aleppo in Protection, Food Assistance, and Support for Family-Based Agricultural Production. These activities have been complemented by earthquake response efforts in collaboration with AICS; the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA); and the International Labor Organization (ILO).