Field Visit Report
A. Date & Location
Date of Visit: 21-22/01/2013
Objectives of the field visit:

Location of Visit: New Damietta
Methodology:

1. Needs assessment for WFP food 
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distributions

2. Discussion with refugees about main 

Home visits
Individual Meetings
Focus Group Discussion

protection and assistance needs
B. Delegation
Name
Mr. Wahid Benamor
Ms. Mirvette Abedrabbo
Ms. Marwa Mostafa
Mr. Khaled Chatila
I)

Title

Organisation

Head of UNHCR Zamalek
Office
Community Services Officer
Registration Associate
Programme Officer

UNHCR
UNHCR
UNHCR
WFP

Main Findings:

Objective 1: Needs Assessment for WFP Food Distribution:
1. Hyper market management is fine with all clauses of WFP draft contract; the Finance manager agreed to sign the contract on Sunday 27th January at WFP office in Cairo. Hyper Finance manager confirmed his readiness to start receiving Syrian Refugees in the store from the 1st of February
2013.
2. Five WFP checklists for the rapid assessment of food security of Syrian asylum seekers in new
Damietta have been completed during the mission. Data will be processed and results will be shared with all concerned parties;
3. UNHCR confirmed that the list of Syrian Asylum seekers that they shared with WFP in New
Damietta is the final one.
Objective 2: Discussion with refugees about main protection and assistance needs:
Below are the results from 3 home visits, Individual Interviews and the Focus Group Discussion:
1. The number of families in New Damietta is 1200 families + 150 families in Gamasa. Out of the 1200 families, 400 families are registered with UNHCR. Most of the Syrians who reside in New Damietta are coming from West Ghotta in Rural Damascus.
2. In general women feel safe in Damietta and no security incidents happened so far.
However women who participated in the FGD mentioned that they prefer to go out in groups or with their husbands in order to avoid any security incidents.
3. All the participants in the FGD mentioned that Egyptians want to get married with their

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girls and they receive their offers through brokers specialized in arranging marriage. Also when they are walking in the streets or in the bus they hear Egyptians say that they want to marry with Syrian girls. The participants said that they refuse this idea because they believe its a kind of exploitation because the Egyptians want to marry with their daughters with a cheap price or just for fun and then after a while they divorce them and for this reason they are very much concerned and never accepted their proposals.
Syrians shall apply a residency permit during the first three months after their arrival. If three months and 13 days passed without taking the residency permit, they have to pay a fine of 190 L.E on leaving Egypt.
Syrians has to go to the Immigration and Passports Unit in Old Damietta to get the residency on the passport.
Most of the Syrian that we met during the mission expressed their willingness to get registered with UNHCR.
The working conditions are difficult as men work in furniture shops in Old Damietta. They work from 8:00 am to 10:00 p.m. and take 800 to 1000 L.E per month.
Young children work in restaurants and take 70 to 100 L.E per week.
Most of the women who participated in the FGD said that they have limited finances and savings are the main source of expenditure which is almost finished. In the other hand they and their husbands are not able to find jobs.
Very few Syrians opened their own business. Since the majority of them almost 90% are considered poor in New Damietta.
Al Tal Alkordi is an Egyptian Islamic Charity which is funded by Qatar distributes 200 L.E for each family; however, delays in the monthly distribution occur sometimes. Women who participated in the FGD said that this support is not enough.
Apartment’s rent in New Damietta was increased. It was 200 L.E and now it went from 800 to 1000 L.E.
All the participants in the FGD said that Egyptian people increased the rent which became more for Syrians than for Egyptians. This also applies to other things as well such as for food prices or transportation cost etc.
Syrians have to reduce the amount of meat and poultry that they eat and they select the cheapest vegetables. They like fruits but they cannot buy them on daily basis. One family said that they eat two meals and not three because of lack of money. All the participants in the FGD said they were forced to change their eating habits with regards to both the quality and quantity of food items.
12% of the children are sent to schools. The rest do not go to school due to the school distance, transportation fees, violence inside the school, and accent barriers. This issue was highlighted as the main concern for all the participants in the FGD as well. It was noted that school fees for Syrians are the same as for the Egyptians.
There are a lot of educated Syrian people who were willing to provide nonformal education to the children at school age but they need the facilities like space, stationary,
Desks etc. to do so.
Poor health services are provided in Al Azhar public hospital in New Damietta according to the community leaders and there are not enough beds in the IC Unit. In addition to that medicine is very expensive and many families cannot afford to buy it. The nearest other hospital is about 45 min driving.
Young children witnessed violence which affected their daily behaviour (flash back). Some of them are traumatized; others have incontinence, other wake up and scream at night due to the conflict that they saw in Syria.

19. Five urgent medical cases were identified during the mission and needs follow up by CS staff. 20. A refugee committee from different age and gender groups was established during the mission and consisted of ten members: 7 Male and 3 female. Three of them were selected during the FGD. Their roles and responsibility will be the following:
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II)

Establish direct communication lines between UNHCR and the refugee population to allow better understanding of population profile, their concerns and priorities
Identify refugees with specific needs (SGBV survivors, Women at risk, elderly, minors, children at risk, etc.) during home visits and other community outreach activities.
Conduct joint home visits with UNHCR/WFP
Follow-up on individual cases based on specific recommendations from UNHCR
Community Services staff.
Provide assistance to WFP food distribution and monitor the distribution which will be carried by WFP starting 1st February

Challenges:
1. Ensure that families will abide by the shopping schedules (to be prepared by WFP) to avoid masses of shoppers at the same time in the supermarket;
2.

Deciding on the exact number of eligible beneficiaries in new Damietta taking into consideration the possible movement of Syrian families within the country.