Syrian Refugees and Other Vulnerable Populations Appeal

Years of crisis in the Syrian Arab Republic has created one of the world's largest and most protracted displacement situations. Approximately 11 million Syrians remain forcibly displaced and around 4 million are hosted in neighbouring countries. While more than 1.3 million Syrians have returned to the Syrian Arab Republic since the political transition in late 2024, the majority of Syrian refugees are expected to remain in host countries through 2026 as insecurity, limited livelihoods and inadequate access to services continue to constrain large-scale return.

Egypt hosts 98,089 registered Syrians in addition to 851,190 Sudanese refugees who have fled conflict in the Sudan since April 2023. Jordan is home to more than 380,990 registered Syrian refugees. And Türkiye hosts more than 2.2 million Syrians registered under temporary protection, as well as around 166,000 refugees and asylum-seekers from other countries under international protection. 

The needs of refugee and vulnerable host community children and families in the region remain acute. In 2026, more than 9.6 million people across Egypt, Jordan and Türkiye require humanitarian assistance. Refugees and vulnerable host communities in the three countries continue to face barriers to employment, social protection and essential services. At the same time, slow economic growth, high debt and persistent inflation are placing additional strain on household resilience and host-country systems. Refugees, particularly women and youth, remain heavily reliant on informal and insecure work, with legal and structural barriers limiting access to formal livelihood opportunities. Children bear a disproportionate share of these challenges. Nearly half of all registered Syrian refugees are under age 18, and their access to education, protection and basic services remains uneven, while mental health and psychosocial needs are increasing and access to specialized support remains limited. Financial strain, displacement and existing gender inequalities continue to heighten the risk of gender-based violence, including sexual violence and early marriage – affecting women and girls across the three countries – while limiting access to quality prevention and response services.

In Egypt, in addition to Syrian refugees the country also hosts Sudanese refugees and asylum-seekers who have fled conflict in the Sudan since April 2023. Many recently arrived Sudanese refugees face acute humanitarian needs: they have lost livelihoods, assets and support networks due to displacement and experience barriers to accessing essential services and protection support. This has placed additional pressure on national systems and increased humanitarian needs. Rising living costs and administrative barriers have severely constrained the ability of Syrian and Sudanese refugees to meet basic needs. A growing number of Sudanese refugees are returning to the Sudan under unsafe conditions. As poverty and food insecurity worsen, families are increasingly resorting to harmful coping strategies, including skipping meals, withdrawing children from school and engaging in child labour and early marriage for girls.  

In Jordan, food security and living conditions of refugees continue to deteriorate. Around 67 per cent of Syrian refugees were living below the poverty line in 2024, continuing a trend of increasing numbers living in poverty. Sixty-nine per cent live in substandard housing, and almost half lack formal rental agreements. Unemployment among Syrian refugees stands at around 36 per cent, more than double the rate for Jordanians, pushing most refugees towards informal and insecure livelihoods. Child labour remains prevalent. Around 11 per cent of children have never attended school, mainly due to financial constraints and access barriers.

In Türkiye, needs in areas affected by the 2023 earthquake remain substantial for both refugee and host community children, despite ongoing recovery and reconstruction efforts. The latest community pulse survey found that economic hardship and limited access to services continue to disrupt children's learning. Key concerns expressed by the community included child labour, overcrowded living conditions and barriers to accessing health services, including documentation and insurance gaps. 

Host governments have shown sustained commitment to hosting large refugee populations. However, legal and policy constraints continue to limit refugees’ inclusion and self-reliance. Egypt's enactment of Asylum Law No. 164 in December 2024 marked an important step towards a State-led, national asylum framework. Sustained international investment in inclusive, resilience-based approaches remains essential to building on this progress. 

Climate change is compounding the vulnerabilities of refugee populations and vulnerable host communities. Rising temperatures, water scarcity and extreme weather are undermining food security, health and livelihoods. This places children at heightened risk of malnutrition, illness and displacement. Integrating climate adaptation into humanitarian programming is therefore an urgent necessity for any response that aims to be sustainable and child-centred.

In Egypt, Jordan and Türkiye, UNICEF's humanitarian response strengthens national systems, advances the inclusion of refugees and host communities in public services and supports safe, voluntary and dignified return, including into the Syrian Arab Republic, while ensuring continuity of essential services across borders. In 2026, UNICEF aims to reach 2.6 million people, including 1.4 million children, with a combination of immediate humanitarian assistance and longer-term resilience-building. This response is guided by UNICEF's mandate, the Core Commitments for Children in Humanitarian Action, the Regional Refugee & Resilience Plan and the Sudan Regional Refugee Response Plan. 

As sector lead for WASH, nutrition and child protection, and co-lead for education, UNICEF integrates gender equality and disability inclusion across all programming to ensure that the most marginalized children, including girls, children with disabilities and those living in poverty, are reached first. 

In education, UNICEF strengthens national systems, expands safe and inclusive learning environments and creates flexible pathways for adolescents who are out of school or at risk of dropping out. In Jordan and Türkiye, where significant numbers of Syrian children have never attended school, interventions target enrolment, retention and skills development, with particular attention to adolescent girls. In Egypt, education support addresses the needs of both Syrian and Sudanese refugee children, many of whom face language barriers and a disrupted learning trajectory. 

WASH, health and nutrition interventions prioritize essential, climate-resilient service delivery. This includes early childhood development, prevention and treatment of acute malnutrition and maternal and newborn health support. With the vast majority of refugees in all three countries living in urban areas, programming has been adapted to meet the needs of urban and peri-urban populations.

Child protection interventions strengthen case management, psychosocial support and community-based prevention of violence, exploitation, child labour and child marriage. In Egypt, UNICEF supports the transition to the new State-led asylum framework and strengthens national child protection systems to respond to the needs of refugee and asylum-seeking children. In Türkiye, UNICEF supports a refugee-responsive child protection system, including scaled-up prevention of violence against children; referrals to and provision of gender-based violence in emergencies prevention and response services for children and caregivers; emergency foster care; and parenting programmes. Mental health and psychosocial support is integrated across sectors in response to the significant and growing burden of psychological distress among refugee children and caregivers. 

Cash assistance and social protection programming enable the most vulnerable households to meet their basic needs. This type of assistance and programming also reduces reliance on harmful coping strategies and protects children's well-being during crises. Where feasible, UNICEF links humanitarian cash assistance to national social protection systems to strengthen shock-responsive approaches, improve continuity of support and contribute to longer-term resilience. 

For families considering voluntary return to the Syrian Arab Republic, UNICEF supports informed decision-making through information on protection risks, including explosive ordnance risk education (EORE), continuity of health and education and cross-border coordination for sustainable reintegration. At border points and in areas of return, UNICEF works to ensure continued access to essential services, with particular attention to women, girls and persons with disabilities. In Türkiye, UNICEF and migration authorities jointly developed a family information package combining life-saving EORE messages, psychological first aid, legal counselling and early childhood development guidance. This is disseminated in departing communities and at border points.