Accessing Documentation & Basic Services
Enabling dignity in urban displacement
While select international NGOs have begun disseminating information to Syrian refugees on how to access civil documentation and thereby public services in host countries, there remains a need for wider distribution of this material, individual case management, and referrals to legal aid.
Information needs to be tailored to the regulations and services specific to each province, as well as continuously updated. The eligibility criteria and application periods for temporary protection IDs in Turkey vary by province and change over time. Syrians who miss out on obtaining temporary protection are unable to access vital services, such as public education and health care.
Other sought-after documentation includes: birth registration, marriage certificates, and legal/residency status. The most vulnerable refugees also require individual case management and accompaniment to providers of medical, educational, and legal services.
RPI and its implementing partner operate an information and accompaniment program for Syrian refugees in Sanliurfa, Turkey, that seeks to meet these needs.
In the future, RPI also envisions working with its partners to:
- Refer the most vulnerable to international protection agencies and duty-bearers for resettlement
- Provide free information, counseling, and legal assistance with post-conflict access to housing, land, and property restitution and reparation once the armed conflict has ended
Disseminating Information and Referrals
Our partner has provided consultations to 6,715 Syrians in Turkey on how to access vital documentation and medical, legal, and educational services.
Accompanying The Most Vulnerable
Our partner has become a hub for individual case management in Sanliurfa, including interpretation/translation, accompaniment to service-providers, and support with completing application forms.
Encouraging Collaboration
Through networking with the American Bar Association, MSF, and IMC, our partner has hosted joint information sessions on critical legal and medical issues.
Syrian refugees benefiting from an information session run jointly by RPI’s partner Basmeh and Zeitooneh and a legal assistance NGO
RPI’s partner Basmeh and Zeitooneh interviewing a Syrian refugee
RPI’s partner Basmeh and Zeitooneh conducting legal information sessions for Syrian refugees
