As the pressure increases on local authorities to implement Covid-19 measures, and the pandemic having dominated the agenda of the international community, the most vulnerable who are affected the most need not be forgotten. The situation regarding Syrian refugees and Roma citizens is still present, and it has in many ways been exacerbated, as a cause of the current pandemic.
Qudra 2 Programme
The Union of Municipalities of Turkey (UMT) has implemented the Qudra 2 Programme to strengthen resilience for Syrian refugees. The project is being implemented in cooperation with The German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ), which is co-financed by the EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis, the EU Madad Fund, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID).
The programme focuses on the allocation of supplementary budget for the most vulnerable communities, whos circumstances have been exacerbated due to the pandemic. The budget is used for Covid-19 measures, whereby in this case, hygiene kits are being distributed for refugees, and protection kits have been made available for municipal personnel to ensure safe delivery of services through UMT.
Find out more here: https://www.qudra-programme.org/en/news-events/news/safelearning/
ROMACTED Programme
Financed by the EU and the Council of Europe, UMT has implemented the ROMACTED Programme, aimed at the integration of Roma citizens. In ROMACTED, a supplementary budget was allocated for the most vulnerable Roma citizens in relation to the Covid-19 measures. Hygiene kits were distributed in neighborhoods to the most vulnerable Roma citizens.
The UMT appreciates the cooperation of donor organizations to reallocate project budget in response to the unexpected pandemic and its impact.
Find out more here: https://www.tbb.gov.tr/en/projects-finance/ongoing-projects/romacted-programme/