Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, Ms. Joyce Msuya, Briefing to the Security Council on the Humanitarian Situation in Syria, 25 February 2022

Thank you,

Mr. President.

This is my first briefing to this Council in my role as Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator. I look forward to closely engaging with all of you.

A few days ago, the United Nations and its humanitarian partners published our evidence-based assessment of humanitarian needs in the Syrian Arab Republic for the coming year.

The findings are clear. And they paint a very bleak picture.

More people are in need than any time since the start of the conflict. A total of 14.6 million people will depend on humanitarian assistance.

This is 9 per cent more than last year and 32 per cent more than the year before.

The world is failing the people of Syria. This cannot be our strategy.

Mr. President,

Hostilities, primarily along front lines, continue to claim civilian lives and damage critical civilian infrastructure, such as hospitals, schools and water facilities. Some 40 more civilians were killed this January alone.

Mines and explosive ordnance claim further lives, including the lives of children.

Hostilities also restrict freedom of movement. This, in turn, places women and children at greater risk of abuse.

Mr. President,

As we saw last month, with the attack on a prison in Al Hasakah, we continue to see the incredibly precarious situation of hundreds of children who remain in detention centres and camps. They should never have been there in the first place. They need protection. They need services. And they need hope for the future. The time to act is long overdue.

Mr. President,

Syria now ranks among the 10 most food insecure countries globally, with a staggering 12 million people considered to be food insecure.

Syria's economy is spiraling further downward. Food keeps getting more expensive and people are going hungry.

Over the last year, the cost to feed a family of five for a month with only the most basic items has almost doubled.

A household spends on average now 50 per cent more than it earns. To get by, families must borrow money without much hope of repaying these loans.

This follows a trend of an ever-increasing financial burden for families.

And it’s forcing them to make unbearable choices.

Children, and more so girls, are being pulled out of school. Child marriages are on the rise.

Female-headed households, older persons without family support, persons with disabilities, and children are disproportionally impacted.

Mr. President,

We are ramping up early recovery programming this year – I know USG Griffiths has also briefed you on this recently Our 2022 Humanitarian Response Plan is nearing finalization, and we expect that roughly one quarter of the total appeal will be geared towards increasing resilience and access to basic services – a significant increase from last year.

Part of our focus will be on revitalizing access to some basic services, such as water.

But we need more support, and we count on the generosity of donors to deliver. The positive facilitation of the different parties of our efforts is critical.

Mr. President,

Millions of people in north-west Syria depend on our support to survive.

Winter has compounded the suffering of people, especially for the millions living in tents.

Through our cross-border operations, we deliver food, medicine and other essential items each month. We support the delivery of essential services.

We do this all in a transparent and principled manner.

Last year, we also expanded access into north-west Syria through restarting cross-line operations.

In December and January, after setting up a new distribution system, crossline aid began reaching people in need.

We have a plan in place for additional deliveries. We are ready to move.

What we need now is support of all concerned parties to enable these crossline missions to go ahead.

Let me reiterate, however, that there is no alternative in place now that can match the scale and scope of the massive United Nations cross-border operation, providing food, vaccines and other vital aid to 2.4 million people.

Mr. President,

People in Syria have suffered for so long. They deserve a better future.

They now need aid to survive, but that should not be the case.

They need a chance to build a dignified life for themselves and their families.

And they need to be able to give their children hope for a better future.

To achieve this, we need sustainable and reliable access. We need more funding. And we need to scale up early recovery programming alongside our life-saving work.

But most importantly, Syrians need peace.

Thank you, Mr. President.