Children in north-west Syria at grave danger amid cholera outbreak and onset of winter

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Thousands of children in northwest Syria are denied access to proper healthcare and education,
having to live under the threat of cholera amid harsh living conditions and a worsening economy.
The past winter seasons saw people, who had already been displaced by bombardment, forced
again from their tents as camps were flooded by heavy rain snowstorms. This year, an outbreak
of cholera, continuous shelling and bombardment, and funding shortages pose a dangerous
prelude to the deepening education and livelihood crisis for the millions of civilians in northwest
Syria, including at least 1,073,932 children enroll at school.

Cholera has made a comeback in all of Syria, and if not stopped, it is expected to have a
catastrophic impact on the country’s healthcare and sanitation infrastructure, already been
devastated by years of bombing and COVID. In the northwest, it Is very alarming that no
emergency funds have been allocated to respond to this crisis and offer minimum protection to
school children by sterilizing water sources, raising concerns among families that their children
will be exposed to the disease and leaving many with no other choice than to drop their children
from schools to protect them (According to ACU, at least 800,000 children are out of schools in
northwest Syria).

In the past three years, ten children have heartbreakingly died as a result of freezing temperatures
and unsafe heating, and this year more lives will be at risk of dying of cholera, especially in
overcrowded camps that lack basic infrastructure and access to clean water For many, this will
be the eleventh consecutive winter in displacement, with families facing even greater hardship
this year due to the economic crisis and the socioeconomic aftershock of rising prices and
shortages in basic necessities.

Schools have consistently recorded a 30-40% reduction in attendance during the coldest months
of the year– typically lasting from mid-December to mid-February. Sickness and absenteeism
linked to cold weather were the top causes reported for children missing out on school. In a
recent assessment of 3,992 functional and nonfunctional schools conducted by the Assistance
Coordination Unit organization, the need for heating oil came at the top of the list of children’s
needs.

Despite the efforts by education actors and donors, the education system in Syria has largely
broken down, exacerbated further by targeting schools, a deteriorating economy, and harsh
weather conditions. The latest data available from HNO 2021 shows an estimated 2.45 million
children are out of school, and a further 1.6 million children are at risk of dropping out. If left out
of school, these children will be subjected to all kinds of abuse, including early marriage and
child labor.

How can we expect children, most of them under ten years old, to endure freezing temperatures
in classrooms that lack proper heating? How can we expect parents to send their children to
schools that lack clean water?

We are a group of Syrian NGOs urging all parties and donors to avert a potential collapse in the
educational system and take all the necessary steps to save thousands of lives in northwest Syria.
We ask you to immediately allocate the necessary funding for effective winterization that is not
only reactive to the immediate needs resulting from extreme winter conditions but also
preventive in nature. Providing proper heating will encourage more teachers and students to
attend school and allow schools at risk of closing this winter to keep their doors open for more
children.

We demand that you prioritize releasing funds to save children’s lives by sterilizing water in all
schools to protect students from exposure to the cholera disease.

In the past years, we learned that schools are safe shelters for thousands of children who have
witnessed unbearable tragedies, from losing family members to being forcibly displaced.
Maintaining routines and spending time with their teachers and classmates have helped many
children cope with trauma. Schools have also helped protect many children from being forced
into early marriage, child labor, and other kinds of abuse.

We call on you not to leave those children alone and to join us in doing everything possible to
protect them and ensure they have access to their basic right to education.

1. HNO 2021
2. Jena 2022

Signatories:

NGO Forum
Assistance Coordination Unit
World Vision International
Education without Borders /Midad
OLIVE RANCH ORGANISATION
Sadad Humanitarian Organization
Bousla for Development & Innovation
Idlib Education Directorate
ATHAR
Nasaem Khair Organization
Hurras network
The Ministry of Education in the Syrian Interim Government
The Union of Parents in the Liberated NS
Free Syrian Teachers Syndicate
Social Development International – SDI
Saed Charity Association
Medical Association of Syrian Expatriates – Sima
Bonyan for Youth and Development Organization
WATAN Foundation
Emissa for Development
Maram Foundation
Useful Women
Syrian NGO Alliance (SNA):
Al-Sham Humanitarian Foundation
ATAA Humanitarian Relief Association
Big Heart Foundation
BINAA Organization for Development
Ghiras Al-Nahda
Hand in Hand for Aid and Development
Horan Foundation
Humanitarian Relief Association – IYD
Ihsan Relief and Development
Önder for Cooperation and Development
Orange Organization
Physicians Across Continents
Rahma Worldwide – Aid and Development
Shafak Organization
SKT organization
Social Development International (SDI)
Syrian American Medical Society (SAMS)
Syria Relief – Turkey
Syria Relief and Development (SRD)
Syrian Expatriate Medical Association (SEMA)
Takaful Al-Sham Charity
Union of Medical Care and Relief Organizations (UOSSM)
Violet organization for relief and development

Children in north-west Syria at grave danger amid cholera outbreak and onset of winter
Source: Philippines Legacy PH