Schulungsort Kilis

Training locations

In Turkey, Ankara, Izmir and Istanbul are among the places where Syrian refugees are accumulated. The project activities of BFW NRW gGmbH and STL Global (Toplumsal Dönüşüm Yaşam ve Kalkınma Derneği – STL Global) concentrate on the project regions Ankara and Istanbul.

Project duration Ankara 01: 01.10.2019 – 31.01.2022
Project duration Ankara 05: 01.11.2019 – 31.01.2022
Project duration Istanbul 02: 01.10.2019 – 31.01.2022

The eruption of the civil war in Syria in 2011 caused a huge influx of Syrian refugees to Turkey. Currently, there are about 2 million registered people and about another 1 Million of unregistered people in the country. Most of the Syrian people geographically concentrate on provinces such as Gaziantep, Şanliurfa, Hatay and Kilis. Generally, there is a high mobility between the Syrian, regarding the change of location in Turkey as well as the movement via sea and land to Europe that intensified in 2015.

According to EU-Directive 2001/555/EC, refugees enjoy the status of being “a person temporarily seeking protection” [1]. This also means they have the right to get a restricted residence permit, provision of medical care, access to the education system and an accommodation. A Migration law that came into force October 2014 changed this status into Turkish rights, but there is missing a definite implementing order. Access to services such as health and education depend on registration and the possession of an identification number.

The main problem for most Syrian refugees living outside of the camps is the gainful employment. To improve that situation, the Turkish government expanded its support for Syrian refugees continuously. This way, Syrian refugees received the “temporary protection” status that secures them access to health services, education and, since the beginning of 2016 and under certain circumstances, a work permit. The work permit is considered an essential requirement for an improvement of the refugees’ life situation. With this step it is expected to reduce the informal employment relationships, that are quite common for Syrian refugees, and that way give them an opportunity of long-term perspectives in the local community.

[1] Dinçer et al.: Turkey and Syrian Refugees – The Limits of Hospitality. Washington November 2013, S. 25f.

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