Step Up Türkiye - pilot programme

Through this support programme, the Dutch Council for Refugees sets out to contribute to the capacity development of local and refugee-led organisations (RLOs) in the southeastern region of Türkiye, to enhance their work on  refugee protection and inclusion.

Background information

Türkiye is home to the largest refugee population in the world, with nearly four million refugees and asylum seekers, mostly Syrian. Over half of them live in the southeastern province. Despite efforts from the government, aid organisations, and host communities, many refugees in Türkiye live under difficult circumstances.

The limited employment opportunities worsened during the Covid pandemic, the devastating earthquakes in 2023, and general economic instability has led to precarious living conditions for refugees. Labour exploitation, child labour and early/forced marriages have been on the rise.

After the earthquakes, refugees are also facing more difficulties accessing healthcare and education. Grassroots organisations are overwhelmed by demands to provide basic services. Furthermore, hate speech against refugees has surged and there is more risk of arbitrary detention and deportations, also causing family separations.

Despite their admirable efforts, local organisations and RLOs urgently need support in various areas to address the significant challenges they face. Post-earthquake trauma of staff, volunteers, and beneficiaries is a huge challenge.

Pilot programme Timeline

The Dutch Council for Refugees initiated this pilot programme  to support local organisations and RLOs in facing these challenges and improving their capacities for the benefit of refugees and asylum seekers. The project is part of the activities that  DCR’s International Programme exerts in line with our commitment to international and European solidarity. This project includes two phases and will run in 2024 and 2025. Both phases are meant to enhance the capacities of the participating organisations.

Phase one: Capacity Academy (2024)

In this phase, we invited up to 20 local organisations and refugee-led organisations to participate in a comprehensive capacity-building programme. Provided in collaboration with Turkish expert partners, the programme encompasses various training courses, twinning with experts, in addition to peer-to-peer learning, both online and in-person.

The Capacity Academy will be running between June and November 2024. The representatives of the participating NGOs will gather twice in this phase for training purposes.The topics of discussion will include legal issues, psychosocial support and mental well-being of staff and beneficiaries. In addition, they will exchange thoughts about fundraising, project development, and working with volunteers. 

Phase Two: Financial & capacity-support (2025)

In this phase, DCR will provide financial and capacity-building support for up to 5 selected organisations that participated in the Capacity Academy. The financial support is intended for projects that focus on enhancing these NGOs’ capacity to work on the protection and inclusion of refugees. The implementation period for this phase will be between January and December 2025.

More information?

For more information over the Step Up Türkiye programme, please contact us via the following email: ip@dcfr.nl.

Or read more information about our international projects.