Multi-Sector Needs Assessment Findings In Afrin District, Aleppo, Syria September 2018 http://www.hihfad.org HandinHandforAidandDevelopment Handinhandforsyr hands4syr Executive Summary Situation Overview During seven years of crisis in Syria, many areas have been damaged and people are living in a situation that lacks the minimum humanitarian standards to save their dignity and meet the daily basic needs. Afrin district is one of areas that has many changes in the dominant forces during the last seven years and is now marked as stable and secure. It has been a resort for several displacement waves from many areas like rural of Damascus and Dara. Afrin area is in urgent need for humanitarian intervention and provision basic services to maintain human dignity and reduce the impact of the crisis on them. Methodology Data collected through face-to-face interviews with key informants within the visited villages, and notes were collected by field team through direct observations. We tried to cover both sexes in a balanced manner as well as IDPs and residents. A questionnaire was filled in each community with population more than (500) and eventually we received 129 questionnaires by conducting about 1,290 interviews with more than (565) key informants from different specialized fields i.e. local council members, medical actors, educational actors, etc. In small communities with population less than 500 persons, the team took quick tours within the community accompanied with community leader and noted down direct observations. The total number of visited communities is (146) from overall (220) community in Afrin District. During the analysis process, data aggregation formula was used to calculate the numbers in sector-based manner. This formula gives weights to the experience of the key informant in the sector to which they are responding, as well as community pertinence (IDP or local resident) and the total population of the community compared to the total population of the sub-district. Sector-Based Analysis Findings Shelter Full or partial destruction in shelters is the most reported problem especially in Ma’batli, Sheikh El-Hadid, Jandairis and Raju. In most of the assessed villages, houses are not affordable as in Afrin, Sharran and Bulbul and houses available for rent are very limited. Majority of key informants reported that houses in their areas are in need for basic improvement materials like concrete, blocks and electrical basic items and fixing kits. NFI Non-Food Items are unavailable in the local markets as majority of respondents reported. More than )85%( of them expresses the need for blankets, cooking materials, heaters, solar lamps and winterization kits. This highlights the need to support people in need, and in particular the most vulnerable groups, with NFI kits by planning intervention before winter. Education Results showed low enrollment in formal and non-formal education for school aged children. The percentage of children aged between 6-12 years enrolled in primary schools is 49% and it decreases to approximately 26% for adolescents between 13-17 in intermediate and secondary schools. The most reported problems in education are that many schools in Afrin districts are not functioning due to partial destruction or are occupied by armed groups in the area. Most of the teachers are volunteering to educate students and in some small villages the schools are not accessible because of long distance which is a 1 problem in the current situation of the lack of transportation network. The roads also need some rehabilitation and paving and when winter comes these roads may not be in service at all. In terms of educational staff, schools are in need for qualified educational staff and supplementary materials. Food Security and livelihood Availability of food and accessibility to local markets varies from subdistrict to another and the situation becomes worse in small areas in term of population. 69% of the key informants reported lack of functioning bakeries in their communities. Food crop production was the most reported activity for generating income in 2017 with 30% of responses. But it decreased to (21%) responses this year according to respondents as people depend more on loans and remittances with (19%) responses. Health In all subdistricts, mental health and psychosocial support services are either not available or not accessible as most of the respondents reported. Some subdistricts like Ma’batli, Raju and Sheikh El-Hadid are in need for almost all health services. Other subdistricts are in need for quality enhancement for available services. Protection Majority of key informants refused to answer the question of the most critical social problems in their communities. The rest reported harassment, kidnapping, exploitation and child labor. The results also showed a risk of mines, remnants of war and improvised explosive devices. Nutrition Roughly 76% of respondents reported difficulties in breastfeeding and the absence of support for non- breastfeeding mothers. For young children between 6-23 months, food quantity, quality and diversity reported to be most significant problems. Limited distribution of liquid milk reported by 13% of key informants and the majority (84%) reported no distribution of any milk products has taken place in their areas. WASH Trucked water is the main source of water for most people in Afrin district. The average daily needed amount of water is 75 liters per person. The key informants reported the existence of water-related diseases like diarrhea, kidney disease and vomiting. As the team observed, there is a need to rehabilitate water infrastructure such as water stations and networks, support with fuel and continuous maintenance and operation needs. Solid waste collection and disposal system is completely dysfunction in most of the subdistricts. 82% reported increasing of rats and pests contaminating food and people and garbage is gathering in the streets. 2 Reference MAP Figure 1- Afrin Map 3 Contents Executive Summary ....................................................................................................................................... 1 Situation Overview .................................................................................................................................... 1 Methodology ............................................................................................................................................. 1 Sector-Based Analysis Findings ................................................................................................................. 1 Reference MAP .............................................................................................................................................. 3 Table of Figures ............................................................................................................................................. 5 Table of Photos .............................................................................................................................................. 5 Population Profiles at Glance ........................................................................................................................ 6 Population Profiles at Glance (Cont’d) .......................................................................................................... 7 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................... 8 Coverage of the Assessment ..................................................................................................................... 8 METHODOLOGY ............................................................................................................................................. 9 Process....................................................................................................................................................... 9 Data Analysis and Aggregation Method .................................................................................................... 9 Challenges and Limitation ....................................................................................................................... 10 Situation Overview and Background ........................................................................................................... 10 Population and Demographic Characteristics ............................................................................................. 10 Population ............................................................................................................................................... 10 Vulnerable groups ................................................................................................................................... 11 Accessibility to Humanitarian aid ............................................................................................................ 12 Sector-Based Analysis .................................................................................................................................. 12 Shelter ..................................................................................................................................................... 12 Non-Food Items ....................................................................................................................................... 14 Education ................................................................................................................................................