It is estimated that around 11 million Syrians have fled their homes since the start of the Syrian civil war in March 2011. According to the UN Refugee Agency, there are currently 230,836 Syrian Refugees in Iraq and most have faced an additional hardship because of the war and political climate of Iraq. These communities as well as displaced Iraqis continue to have an urgent need for food and hygiene supplies.
There is a gap in the distribution of hygiene materials to refugees living in Domiz 2 camp, a camp built to help meet the overwhelming needs present in Domiz 1, the largest Syrian refugee camp in Iraq. Therefore Domiz 2 has a higher percentage of particularly vulnerable families with disabled, widows, orphans, and sick. Other international NGOs that were previously providing support to Domiz 2 have had their funding re-allocated focusing on the current offensive on Mosul.
RED International's partner, Operation Mercy (OPM) wants to distribute these vital hygiene kits to Domiz 2 between February and July 2017. Syrian refugees have to put hygiene second to food even though they know that it is vital to their family's survival. Currently 1891 families / 8808 individuals reside there. This distribution alleviates the need for families to spend their meagre incomes on hygiene products and instead they can purchase food and other necessities.
The distribution will help improve the health and hygiene conditions of the beneficiaries. It will empower the community by involving them in the process. OPM employ local staff with the aim to build their capacity in multiple ways, like increasing their skills in organising distribution systems and increasing their monitoring and evaluation skills. All this will also be preparing the communities to be involved in longer term re-development work, once that is possible.
