Cash Assistancein Re-emerging Markets (CARMA III)

finished

After 12 years of the Syria crisis, and on top of it the economic and Covid-19 crisis, the recent crisis in Ukraine has further exacerbated the situation in Syria, aggravating peoples’ dire livelihoods, food insecurity, protection needs, and negative coping strategies. Forced displacement and a regional financial crisis coupled with the socio-economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic have translated into a dramatic decline of employment opportunities, rising levels of food insecurity and protection risks for the most vulnerable. The Syria Humanitarian Needs Overview 2022 estimates that 97% of Syrians live below the poverty line. Female-headed households are disproportionally affected.

To meet their basic needs, such as food and shelter, vulnerable families are forced to increasingly engage in negative coping strategies which include cutting the number of meals, reducing expenses on health and education, and selling remaining assets. This aggravates protection risks for the most vulnerable, such as children and people with disabilities, as child labour, school dropouts and early marriage are increasing. At the same time, domestic tensions and violence are of rising concern as coping in this extremely difficult situation puts a severe strain on family relationships.

With the continued effects of the Covid-19 pandemic and a decade of conflict, vulnerable Syrians face immense pressure to meet their basic needs and are in urgent need of assistance to cope and protect themselves.

The project will contribute to the improved ability of vulnerable internally displaced, returnee, refugee and host community households to protect and sustain their lives through a combination of cash and case management services.

By providing cash transfers to the most vulnerable families, beneficiaries will be enabled to address their most essential basic needs, such as food, shelter and medicine. Additional cash support will be granted during the winter months to cater for special winter needs, such as heating. With their basic needs covered, HHs will be able to prevent the recourse to irreversible negative coping mechanisms, increase their food consumption and reduce their negative coping strategies.

The case management approach addresses the differential needs of families through targeted protection services by trained case workers, for instance to support access to schooling, caring for people with disabilities and gender based violence survivors. Individual case assessments inform the assistance package based on specific needs and includes in-kind or cash support, for instance to access legal advice or cover school fees, internal and external referrals to further specialised services, and group awareness raising sessions on protection topics such as children rights. With this combined approach, vulnerable Syrians receive individualised support that extends beyond the lifetime of the project.

The project is situated in the thematic area of migration, and builds on the previously implemented project CARMA I and CARMA II, taking into account important lessons learned and drawing from key processes and structures established. CARMA III continues to use cash as main modality and to set standards for cash programming in Syria, contributing to increased harmonisation across cash actors in the sector. The project also mainstreams capacity building efforts for national implementing partners in line with Caritas Switzerland’s localisation commitments