Kızılaykart Cash Based Assistance, Information Note

Following the first refugee wave in May 2011, refugees from Syria has continued to seek asylum in Turkey. As a result of the open-door policy between 2011 and 2015, Syrians were welcomed by the Turkish government and obtained legal status under temporary protection. Subsequently, Turkey is hosting more than 3.4 million refugees who are living in temporary accommodation centers and urban areas nationwide. In addition to Syrians, Turkey hosts more than 500 thousand refugees from other conflict zones such as Iraq, Afghanistan, and Somalia. This makes Turkey the biggest refugee-hosting country in the world.

Although they have access to such basic rights as education, employment, health, they face some barriers in meeting their basic needs due to several cultural, economic, and social challenges.

To overcome these challenges, Türk Kızılay (established Kızılaykart Platform to support vulnerable refugees in need through several cash assistance programmes. Providing basic needs assistance to refugees is intended to support the social cohesion of refugees within local communities. The Kızılaykart Programmes are implemented in close partnership with local authorities and international organizations.