Evaluation of the European Union’s humanitarian response to the refugee crisis in Turkey

This evaluation covers DG ECHO’s programming in Turkey in 2016-2017 (EUR 1.4 billion), implemented as the humanitarian component of the first phase of the Facility for Refugees in Turkey (the Facility). DG ECHO’s 45 projects were distributed across four sectors: protection, basic needs, health and education. The evaluation was conducted between July 2018 and April 2019, with fieldwork in ten provinces of Turkey from October to November 2018.

The evaluation found that DG ECHO is on track to achieving its objectives, and that the mechanism of the Facility permitted results and efficiencies at a scale that could not have been achieved with a conventional mix of DG ECHO and member state funding alone. The essential humanitarian needs of refugees in Turkey could not have been met without close cooperation with the Government of Turkey, which provides protection and social services to approximately 4.0 million registered refugees (but not to unregistered refugees), and which also allows DG ECHO’s flagship cash transfer programmes to deliver through government systems nationwide.

Looking ahead, the foundations are in place for the ongoing needs of the protracted refugee population to be met by continued Government support and scaled-up social and economic programmes managed by DG NEAR.