Istanbul Intersectoral Working Group (IIWG) Meeting

Organized by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the “Istanbul Intersectoral Working Group” (IIWG) Meeting was held on 22 June 2023 in Istanbul.

In the meeting, attended by representatives of many institutions operating in the field of social cohesion, protection and humanitarian aid, along with the World Academy of Local Government and Democracy (WALD), information updates were made on the topics of education, economic empowerment, health, basic needs, coordination between municipalities and institutions.

The protection services for the most vulnerable segments of the society, which took place in Istanbul in 2023, were provided through partners. With these services, a total of 70,000 people were reached, 19,000 sensitive cases were studied, and 32,000 clients were referred to different institutions. Within the scope of child protection, 13,502 children were reached and 7,903 of them were provided with cash assistance. Along with these services, a total of 4,000 people were supported in Istanbul and Bursa. 55,000 people from the earthquake region benefited from the services in the Marmara region.

WALD Academy Director Hülya Alper gave a speech at the meeting on social cohesion and cooperation under the title of Coordination with Municipalities. Emphasizing that municipalities should attach importance to cooperation with non-governmental organizations in order to contribute to the sustainability of services for refugees, ALPER said that municipalities play an important role in immigration and refugee policies and are considered as an important actor in terms of social cohesion. In the continuation of the meeting, ideas were exchanged about institutions and municipalities, work in the field and problems. In addition to the issues of raising awareness of disasters for refugees and dealing with prejudices in society, cooperation opportunities and studies in this field were discussed.

At the end of the program, while the participants shared their observations and suggestions from the field, they emphasized that more attention should be paid to disaster awareness and dissemination activities. In addition, it was stated that more efforts should be made to solve the problems experienced in accessing services in different parts of Istanbul.