The Ve donors’ conference for Syria, organized by the United Nations and the European Union, which took place on Monday March 29 and Tuesday March 30, had the ambition to raise 10 billion dollars (8.5 billion euros) for come to the aid of the millions of Syrian refugees thrown on the roads of exile, after ten years of war.
For Jean-Bertrand Mothes, head of the fragilities, crises and conflicts department at the French Development Agency (AFD) – one of the main donors -, if the conditions for a return to Syria are not met for For political reasons, it is a question of maintaining the international mobilization to assist the millions of refugees who have settled in neighboring countries and local communities, who have been destabilized by their presence.
The Ve donors’ conference for Syria was held against a backdrop of worsening humanitarian and economic crisis affecting the people of Syria. What to expect
It is an important exercise. It is an exercise of contribution, at the regional and international level, to support the Syrians but also the countries of the region which are impacted by the Syrian crisis, by the installation of refugees on their territory. We note a shared shortage of international aid, as we can see with regard to the situation in Yemen. France will maintain its aid.
There is also this sad anniversary [les dix ans du conflit], which perhaps puts Syria back at the center of the agenda. We must maintain an international mobilization. The aim is to help these communities, whose presence in the riparian countries is sustainable, as long as the conditions for their return to the country are not met. We owe it to ourselves to provide assistance to both refugees and host populations, who are severely affected by the crisis – as in Lebanon. A crisis aggravated by the Covid-19 epidemic.
What about aid to victims in Syria itself, paralyzed, for now, due to tensions between the government in Damascus and its allies – including Russia – and Western donors?
I can only answer on behalf of AFD, but that is the whole purpose of the mobilization of French diplomacy, even if the solutions are, for us, very limited on the ground. If only with regard to the procurement conditions. We are no longer present on Syrian territory, for political reasons. But France is still diplomatically active. Would it not be relevant to have a return of international donors in Syria itself? It is too early, the political conditions in the country are not met, while the needs are immense in terms of access to water, health, education, etc.
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