Latvia continues providing support for civilians in Syria affected by a protracted civil war, especially the most vulnerable groups – women and children subject to extreme risk of violence.
Towards this goal, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in association with an international non-governmental organisation, Un Ponte Per, is launching a new assistance project in the north of Syria, the region of Raqqa, to promote the accessibility of education for women and girls. The project will be implemented in line with the objectives set out in the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security. This will also bring contribution to the efforts of the Global Coalition to Defeat Daesh/ISIS – Latvia also being a member of that coalition – to stabilise the security situation in Syria. The estimated project costs are 50,000 EUR.
The civil war in Syria has been raging for more than a decade forcing more than 13 million Syrian people to flee their homes, while 6.8 million of them have been forced to seek safety and refuge outside the country. Regardless of persistent international efforts underway, it has not yet been possible to achieve a sustainable political solution in Syria that would ensure a sustainable peace and enable the return of refugees to begin.
Total assistance provided by Latvia to Syria since 2012 amounts to more than 400,000 EUR. In 2020, Latvia, in partnership with an international non-governmental organisation, Un Ponte Per, carried out their first project aimed at assistance to women and girls in the Raqqa region in the north of Syria, providing support towards the reduction of violence against women and girls, including in refugee camps.