Context:
Almost six million Palestinian refugees are registered with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). Many have been living in camps in Jordan, Lebanon, the West Bank, Gaza and Syria for generations. Their living condi-tions are marked by war, destroyed infrastructure, poverty, high unemployment and restricted rights. The uncertain future of UNRWA and the Gaza Strip exacerbates the existential insecu-rity of people who have little influence on their living conditions or political decision-making processes.
Objective:
Local, national and regional actors in the Middle East region address the concerns raised by Palestinian refugees in a more targeted manner in the political context. They develop effective and practical solutions for the specific needs of Palestinian refugee communities.
Approach:
The project is active in three areas of action to involve Palestinian refugees in decision-making processes:
1. Establishing dialogue: Together with UNRWA, host governments and civil society ac-tors, the project creates dialogue formats that actively involve Palestinian refugees, especially young people and women. This results in strategies for solving specific challenges in the camps.
2. Developing roles: The project supports local, national and regional actors in effectively fulfilling their responsibilities towards Palestinian refugees. Through targeted measures, experts and executive staff develop skills and translate them into concrete steps to further develop their roles.
3. Empowering young people: Young refugees learn to represent their own concerns through needs-based measures. They acquire specific skills, helpful knowledge and access to political and social participation.