2019 Humanitarian Needs Overview: Syrian Arab Republic

With the crisis in its eighth year, staggering levels of need persist for people across Syria. An estimated 11.7 million people were in need of various forms of humanitarian assistance as of the end of 2018, representing a reduction since the beginning of the year. An estimated 6.2 million people remained internally displaced, with well over 1.6 million population movements recorded between January and December 2018. Close to 1.4 million displaced persons reportedly returned home spontaneously during the same period, with the majority estimated to have been displaced for relatively short durations. The UN estimates that 25 per cent of internally displaced persons (IDPs) are women of reproductive age, and 4 per cent are pregnant women that require sustained maternal health services, including emergency obstetric care.

Based on recent assessments, the Food Security and Agriculture sector estimates that a third of the population in Syria is food insecure, with pockets of acute and chronic malnutrition persisting in certain areas. Outbreaks of measles, acute bloody diarrhoea, typhoid fever and leishmaniasis were reported in various areas of the country throughout the year. Palestine refugees in Syria have remained particularly vulnerable, affected by displacement, loss of assets, and significant destruction of residential areas.