Help for Syrian refugee children in Lebanon

The Issue

Syrian refugee children outside a tent school in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon

As the Syrian crisis enters its seventh year, half the population is now displaced. UNHCR statistics show there are 5.6 million registered refugees in the region, with children and youth making up half of these numbers. OCHA (United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs) has reported that 13.1 million people are still in need of humanitarian assistance.

While official registered figures of Syrian refugees in Lebanon dropped to around 995,000 as of January 2018, the Lebanese government and many NGOs have said that the number is closer to 1.5 million. With a population of just 4 million themselves, the Lebanese have the highest per capita concentration of refugees in the world, and have been been struggling to accommodate this flood of new arrivals.

Around a third of refugees (around 360,000) are located in the Bekaa Valley, often living in small makeshift or unofficial camps. Large camps are not permitted by the Lebanese government and as a result, informal settlements of 50-100 families have become commonplace. Across the country, refugees in the Bekaa Valley (and Akkar) face the most poverty, with parents often forced to take their children out of school and into full time work to earn a living. Many of the camps are still without basic services for children, including education.

The Lebanese Government have been working with the UN to provide education for all. The main policy has been to enrol refugees into the existing public education system, creating a 2nd shift provision for refugees and encouraging integration.

This has not been without its problems. In many areas refugees vastly outnumber the Lebanese students and there is not the capacity to provide for everyone who needs it. Within the rural Bekaa Valley, public schools are sporadically placed, meaning that access to them is difficult, especially in the winter.

There have also been reports of safety issues, harassment, violence and discrimination which has led to a high dropout rate. Refugee children that do continue to attend are struggling with the new and different curricula, language barriers and lack of appropriate infrastructure. There is low teacher capacity, overcrowding, lack of adequate sanitation facilities and limited catch up programmes. In total, an estimated 49.6 million school days were missed by an estimated 290,000 refugee children who remained out of school in 2017.

All of these factors, faced by children who are also coming to terms with their own trauma and distress, are continuing to create barriers to education. Consequently there is currently a need for the provision of informal education within the camps.

What we are doing to help

Syrian refugee children in tent school in Bekaa Valley, Lebanon

Over the past four years Children on the Edge have been working in partnership with Lebanese NGO - Mercy Foundation, within the refugee communities in Bekaa Valley. Together we are providing quality, child friendly education for Syrian refugee children who are unable to access government or UN school provision.

Four tent schools, in addition to a Community Centre school in Beirut, provide education for around 500 children aged 6 -12. They are safe places with a trusted adult presence.

Where other projects of this kind bring in teachers from the outside, this model raises up teachers from within the Syrian refugee community. This has created a sense of ownership and provided vital livelihood opportunities.

The children are following a Syrian and Lebanese, child friendly curriculum in their own dialect. Staff use Montessori techniques to help children re-engage with Arabic, maths, science, history, geography and English.

Many of these children have experienced trauma in Syria having witnessed the brutality of war; some of them having lost close family members. The ability to play is crucial for the healthy development of every child, helping them to feel secure, process what they have been through, and tap into their natural resilience.

Emergency supplies have been provided during the harsh winter weather and, due to camp evacuations by the military, it has been necessary to build and maintain a new camp, ensuring safety and stability for 50 refugee families.

Our partners have also responded to the growing need across the border in Syria. They focus on getting fuel and food to internally displaced families in the eastern suburbs of Damascus.

Their Community Centre in Beirut caters for both Syrian and Iraqi refugees and not only provides education, but is a hub for the wider support of the refugee communities and the Lebanese poor.

“School is like their second home. When I give the students time to draw, they draw houses and gardens. It has changed from when they used to draw war, and I see by what they draw now that school makes them feel safer. They like to be here”.

Sawson - Refugee teacher at the camp schools.