Iraqi Refugee Children Afternoon School Program in Damascus, Syria:

Project Brief for Venture International

Project title: Iraqi Refugee Children’s Afternoon School Program

Project Leadership: The director of a local Christian Church School, Damascus, Syria. The organization leads a team of 12 staff, including 8 teachers/counselors and 4 administrative staff. They also receive support from the pastors affiliated with the organization. Regular support and monitoring visits will be provided by the Manara International team from Amman, Jordan. Venture International, led by Bruce Menser, President, will provide overall project oversight, including regular reporting and project evaluation.

Project Duration: One year, beginning January 1, 2010. The need for this intervention with the children will likely continue into 2011 and beyond. In the course of 2010, Venture International and Manara International will collaborate with the school and church leadership on multiple year plans and funding.

Estimated First Year Cost: $65,000. Major cost components include meals for the children 4 days per week, stipends for the staff of 13, daily transportation for the children, transportation for special outings, special outings entrance fees, teacher training, and project monitoring.

Background: Iraqi refugees have fled to Syria since the first Gulf War in 1990. Another major exodus of Iraqi’s occurred in the aftermath of the 2003 war which led to the overthrow of Saddam Hussein. The ensuing insecurity in Iraq has led to an estimated 2.5 million Iraqi’s fleeing to several countries in the Middle East. Today, an estimated 1.2 million Iraqi’s reside in Syria. Officially, the Iraqi’s are not allowed to work. Some refugees receive support from the UNHCR. Other support comes from international aid agencies and local organizations. A small percentage of the refugees have emigrated to a variety of western countries. Such emigration has become increasingly difficult in recent years. Due to ongoing insecurity in Iraq, return to Iraq is all but impossible. The Iraqi refugees in Syria (and the region in general) find themselves stuck in poverty, with no where to go, receiving limited support from the local authorities and the international community, and largely forgotten by the outside world.

Adding to this hopeless situation, the refugees have arrived traumatized from first hand experience of war, death of loved ones, disappearance of family members, extortion, blackmail, and being forced to leave their homes due to any one, or all of these experiences. Furthermore, most families are living in the poorest part of the city, in small apartments, with many family members crowded into a couple of rooms. The stress on these families is explosive and children are facing very dangerous and abusive family situations. This abusive environment includes physical beating, sexual abuse, parental neglect, and starvation.

Main Goal: To provide a regular afternoon school program for at least 130 Iraqi refugee children in a safe, professional, and loving environment.

Project Objectives: 1) Support the local church in the provision of a holistic child friendly program; 2) Provide classes in Arabic, English and Geography; 3) Provide counseling for traumatized children; 4) Provide a safe place for children, along with fun outings that encourage and bring hope; 5) Provide ongoing training and support for volunteer staff that serve these special needs children; 6) Provide the children with a nutritious meal 4 days per week.

Potential Impact and Outcome: Most of the children come from non Christian backgrounds. The local Christian church has established trust with the children and their families and is very open about their faith in God. Daily chapel services encourage worship and prayer. In this complex environment a very sensitive and bold witness to the love of God in Jesus Christ occurs daily. The whole program is a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate love and caring for the children.

As mentioned in the background section above, the needs of the children are acute. One special need is counseling on self esteem. Often the children are coming from abusive environments and struggle deeply with self confidence. Some children are suicidal and require special counseling and attention.

Educational Element: Most of the children are not attending a regular school. This afternoon program is not a substitute for a regular curriculum. It is an emergency interim solution that can only provide a small part of the educational needs.

Annual Budget Summary (12 month period): Total cost of this project would be $65,000 and includes staff and administrative salaries, meals for the children, transportation, training, and monitoring and operational expenditures.

Prepared by Bruce Menser, President, Venture International

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