€275 million has been made available under the EU Regional Trust Fund in response to the Syrian crisis to pay for projects in favour of Syrian refugees and their host communities, the Commission announced on Tuesday 20 June, on World Refugee Day.
The EU Trust Fund Board, which brings together the European Commission, the EU member states, representatives of Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq and the World Bank, approved these projects.
Of the total amount, €126.5 million will pay for access to training, revenue generation and Turkish lessons for refugees in Turkey; €11.5 million has been earmarked to improve access to health care for refugees and their host communities; €10 million will go to increase refugees' skills and the capacity of the local authorities in Turkey; €19 million has been allocated to an education programme in Lebanon, Turkey and Jordan; €25 million will go to a support programme for vulnerable girls and women in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey; and €20 million will finance a programme to help Serbia to manage the migrant/refugee crisis along the Balkans route.
These new projects bring the total amount of resources made available to the Fund to over €1 billion. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)