Bukra Ahla

Programme for Syrian refugee children in Lebanon

2015 till 2018

Beyrouth, Lebanon

Context

Since 31 December 2016, 1,011,366 Syrian refugees have been registered by UNHCR in Lebanon. This massive influx has put enormous pressure on Lebanese public services, particularly in the field of education where they are overwhelmed.
45% of the refugees in Lebanon are between 3 and 18 years old. Based on available figures, it was estimated in mid-2017 that approximately 325,741 school-age refugees in Lebanon lacked access to formal education.
The consequences of this education gap are disastrous. In the short term, these children are at risk of being abused, exploited or married off at an early age, or of being recruited by armed groups. In the long term, these children and adolescents could risk becoming a “lost generation”.

Beneficiaries

120 Syrian refugee children, aged between 5 and 14. Most of them live in the Shatila camp, located a few metres from the Center.
These children have been out of the “formal” school system for several years, and have almost no chance of joining a Lebanese public school. In addition, most of them suffer from psychological trauma that hinders their emotional and intellectual development, thus further reducing their chances of accessing the Lebanese public school system.

Objective

The project aims to provide informal education to Syrian refugee children and young adults, enabling them to enter the official Lebanese school system. Psychological support, citizenship awareness and vocational training (for girls) are also offered.
In this way, SB Overseas hopes to give these children the means to flourish in Lebanon or, if the situation evolves positively, to return to Syria and become actors in the reconstruction of their country.

Results

– 120 children have benefited from school support. All of them have sufficiently caught up on their academic knowledge to be able to access (and succeed in) Lebanese public education;
– 150 young adults have acquired the basic knowledge and skills necessary to enable them to become more independent members of society and/or to help support their families economically.

Our actions

Whether on a national or international level, we want to offer young people the best possible opportunities for the future. We support projects through concrete action on the ground thanks to our partner organisations

Discover this action

2010 till 2019

Belgium