As a part of Jersey’s response to emergency requests for aid, since 2016, JOA has been contributing to the Syria Humanitarian Fund (SHF), a multi-donor country-based pooled fund, established by the United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator (OCHA) in June 2014.
In contributing to the SHF, Jersey has been acknowledged as a government donor, joining the aid organisations of other countries, such as the UK, Spain, Sweden, Iceland and Germany, in supporting the UN’s efforts to co-ordinate emergency relief in Syria.
Projects supported by the SHF
A major focus of the SHF is to assist people in Syria living in hard-to-reach and besieged areas. According to the 2017 SHF Annual Report, funds were used to, amongst other things:
- Address the basic shelter, food and medical survival needs of displaced persons, vulnerable residents and returnees;
- support activities related to the rehabilitation of water systems; the repair and rehabilitation of sewage and solid waste management systems and the installation of community water tanks;
- Provide temporary classrooms, child friendly spaces and psychosocial support for boys and girls;
- Assist those who have lost their livelihoods, including distributing sheep to families in need in al-Hassakeh governorate; and
- Providing a safe space of women and girls in al-Hassakeh, Aleppo.
To find out more, please review the SHF Annual Reports, or visit OCHA’s website.
