FACT SHEET February 2019

NRC’s operations in

Iran Photo: Marjan Jesmi/NRC

Humanitarian overview NRC’s operation

For almost four decades, has hosted one of the We work to improve the access of displaced Afghans in world’s largest displaced populations, including around Iran to basic humanitarian services. We deliver services 3.6 million Afghans and 28,000 Iraqis. in 9 provinces across the country and work closely with our operations in to ensure an overall Less than half the Afghan population in Iran is docu- regional response. mented. Rising annual renewal fees are costly, notably for larger families. Undocumented and newly arrived Through our support to UNHCR’s Solutions Strategy Afghans face issues accessing basic services and may for Afghan (SSAR) we advocate for improved be at risk of deportation. Recent progressive policies coordination in response to Afghans’ needs. Since No- by the Iranian government include granting access vember 2017, we have also been providing emergency to universal public health insurance to documented relief including shelter and sanitation and hygiene units Afghans. By opening public schools to all Afghan to those affected by ’s earthquake. children, undocumented families with children attending public schools are no longer subject to deportation. While Iran’s support for exceeds that of many aid organisations, Afghans’ ability to secure reliable and regular income remains a challenge. Their situation is further exasperated as Iran’s economy faces serious challenges as a result of the reimpostion of US sanctions in 2018.

Iran is disaster-prone, struck by frequent earthquakes NRC Iran and floods. Established 2012 International staff 8 National staff 67

www.nrc.no NRC Iran Country office

Areas of operation , Semnan, , Alborz, Tehran, Razavi Khorasan, Hormozgan, Kermanshah, Sistan, and Baluchistan

NRC Iran www.nrc.no/iran Country director: Olivier Vandecasteele Address: 27–29 East Daneshvar Street, Shiraz Square, Email: [email protected] Mollasadra, Tehran Phone: +98 21 8806 6173

Education Information, counselling and legal assistance In 2015, the Supreme Leader issued a decree through (ICLA) which all Afghan children are given access to education Our ICLA team supports Iran’s displaced Afghan pop- irrespective of their legal status. However, socio-eco- ulation in exercising their rights and making informed nomic and cultural barriers to the implementation of this decisions. Our experts provide: decree remain. Our team offers: • information and counselling to improve access to • literacy and numeracy courses through Accelerated essential services; Education Programmes for out-of-school children • unconditional cash assistance as a protection to help them bridge the gap and enter school at the tool, to enable greater access to available services appropriate level; including education and civil documentation and to • extracurricular activities, like art therapy and game- address emergency situations; based education; • reliable information to Afghans considering a return • life skill courses for school students and out-of- to Afghanistan, on how to access identity and civil school children; documentation and available services upon return, • life skills and positive parenting courses for parents; so that they can make informed decisions. • support to the formal education system by building and rehabilitating schools and classrooms, includ- Livelihoods and food security ing Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) facil- Our livelihoods and food security team explore ways ities, and providing essential education materials to improve and displaced families’ livelihoods including school equipment and stationery; and to foster their social and economic status in Iran. • certified soft skills training for youth. We also provide emergency cash assistance to people affected by natural disasters. Our specialists:

www.nrc.no • distribute multi-purpose cash through bank cards to • supports our emergency response team in the case cover basic household needs; of an emergency notably through the provision of • provide business grants and/or toolkits for eligible non-food items. small business owners to initiate and/or expand their activities; Water, sanitation and hygiene promotion (WASH) • collaborate with our education team to offer cer- It is crucial that displaced Afghans in Iran as as tified vocational and transferrable skills training those affected by emergencies have access to potable including tailoring, construction, welding, electricity, water and adequate sanitation facilities. To ensure this, hairdressing, plumbing and computer use; our WASH team: • establish income generating workshops; • conduct labour market assessments to design new • collaborates with our shelter team to construct projects and maximise their impact. and upgrade latrines, showers and handwashing facilities in public spaces such as settlements and Shelter and settlements schools, as well as in refugees’ shelters; Our shelter team works towards providing displaced • provides and maintains treatment plants Afghans and those affected by emergencies with safe (STPs); and suitable living conditions and addresses housing • offers Hygiene Promotion Training, for students and deficiencies in settlements, urban, peri-urban and rural adults; areas. Our team: • distributes hygiene kits to students and households, to reinforce training and ensure behaviour change; • constructs/rehabilitates shelters and public infra- • improves access to safe and drinkable water for structure, including playgrounds, power supply refugees through provision of water purifiers or networks, sport courts etc.; water trucking; • constructs and rehabilitates schools to provide safe • provides WASH infrastructure including aerial water educational space; reservoirs and surface-water collection systems; • constructs community centres designed to serve as • supports our emergency response team in the case hubs to deliver services to Afghan and host com- of an emergency. munities; • provides training about basic construction practices and energy-saving techniques;

NRC Iran is grateful for the generous support from our donors:

Australian Direct Aid Program (DAP) SIDA Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM) Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA)

www.nrc.no