COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Fifth Annual Report on the Facility for Refugees in Turkey
Date: 2021-05-26
Institutions: Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, European Commission
Subjects: EU Member State, EU financial instrument, EU migration policy, Türkiye, activity report, aid to refugees, coordination of aid, migrant, migration control, refugee

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 26.5.2021  COM(2021) 255 final  COMMUNICATION FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Fifth Annual Report on the Facility for Refugees in Turkey      
 
 
Contents 
1. 

Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 1 

1.1.  Turkey and the refugee crisis .......................................................................................... 1 

1.2.  The EU response to the crisis and the establishment of the Facility ............................... 2 

2.  The functioning of the Facility ........................................................................................... 5 

3.  Financial capacity, duration and nature of funding ............................................................ 6 

4. 

Implementation of the Facility ............................................................................................ 8 

5.  Monitoring & evaluation ................................................................................................... 15 

6.  Audit ................................................................................................................................. 17 

7.  Communication and visibility ........................................................................................... 17 

8.  Conclusion and next steps ................................................................................................. 18 

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1.  Introduction 
In accordance with Article 8 (1) of the Commission Decision of 24 November 20151 on the 
coordination  of  the  actions  of  the  Union  and  of  the  Member  States  through  a  coordination 
mechanism  ("the  Decision"),  the  Commission  shall  keep  the  European  Parliament  and  the 
Council regularly informed about the implementation of the Facility for Refugees in Turkey 
(hereinafter  'the Facility'). Article 8  (2) of the Decision provides that the Commission  shall 
report annually to the European Parliament and to the Council on the implementation of the 
Facility. The first Annual Report on the Facility was published in March 20172. It described 
the  functioning  of  the  Facility,  the  first  actions  undertaken  in  view  of  its  implementation, 
monitoring, the evaluation system, as well as related communication activities. The second, 
third  and  fourth  report  were  published  in  March  20183,  April  20194,  and  April  20205 
respectively. The cut-off date for this report is end-February 2021. 

1.1. Turkey and the refugee crisis 

Due  to  its  geographic  position,  Turkey  is  a  prominent  reception  and  transit  country  for 
refugees and migrants. As a result of an unprecedented number of people arriving in Turkey, 
mainly  due  to  the  conflicts  in  Syria,  Iraq  and  Afghanistan,  the  country  has  been  hosting 
around  four  million  refugees,  the  highest  number  in  the  world.  This  includes  3.6  million 
registered Syrian refugees6, and 330 000 registered refugees and asylum seekers mainly from 
Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran and Somalia7 8. This very large number of people has had a significant 
impact on the host communities. The protracted displacement of Syrian refugees in Turkey is 
posing  increasing  challenges  on  social  cohesion  between  refugees,  migrants  and  host 
communities, especially in a context characterised by economic downturn and the impact of 
the COVID-19 pandemic on the labour market.  

Turkey  continues  to  make  very  significant  efforts  in  hosting  and  addressing  the  needs  of 
almost  four  million  refugees  and  migrants.  Turkey  reiterated  its  commitment  to  the 
implementation  of  the  EU-Turkey  Statement  of  March  20169  and  played  a  key  role  in 

1 Commission Decision C(2015) 9500 of 24.11.2015 on the coordination of the actions of the Union and of the 
Member  States  through  a  coordination  mechanism  –  the  Refugee  Facility  for  Turkey,  as  amended  by 
Commission Decision C(2016)855 of 10.2.2016.  
2 https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-
enlargement/sites/near/files/170302_facility_for_refugees_in_turkey_first_annual_report.pdf  
3 https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-
enlargement/sites/near/files/14032018_facility_for_refugees_in_turkey_second_annual_report.pdf  
4 https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-
enlargement/sites/near/files/com_2019_174_f1_communication_from_commission_to_inst_en_v5_p1_1016762
.pdf  
5 https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-
enlargement/sites/near/files/fourth_annual_report_on_the_facility_for_refugees_in_turkey.pdf  
6 https://en.goc.gov.tr/temporary-protection27 
7 https://www.unhcr.org/tr/en/unhcr-turkey-stats  
8 A specificity of the Turkish asylum system is linked to the fact that the country has signed the 1967 New York 
Protocol  of  the  1951  Geneva  Convention  with  a  reservation.  Accordingly,  the  vast  majority  of  refugees  in 
Turkey  cannot  apply  for  fully-fledged  refugee  status  but  for  "Conditional  Refugee"  status  only,  which,  if 
granted, limits the stay in the country until the moment a recognised refugee is "resettled to a third country". 
9 http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2016/03/18-eu-turkey-statement/ 

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ensuring  effective  management  of  migratory  flows  along  the  Eastern  Mediterranean  route. 
Despite  a  short  period  of  time  in  February/March  2020  during  which  Turkey  actively 
encouraged  migrants  to  move  towards  the  Greek  land  border,  the  Statement  continued  to 
deliver concrete results in 2020 in reducing irregular and dangerous crossings and in saving 
lives in the Aegean Sea.  

In their Joint Communication on the state of play of EU-Turkey political, economic and trade 
relations10,  the  European  Commission  and  the  High  Representative  suggested  a  more 
effective  and  mutually  beneficial  implementation  of  key  areas  of  the  2016  EU-Turkey 
Statement,  notably  on  migration  management,  by  resuming  without  any  further  delay  the 
process  of  returns  from  the  Greek  islands,  starting  with  the  1450  returnees  whose  legal 
appeals  are  exhausted  and  conversely  by  stepping  up  resettlements  from  Turkey  to  the 
European Union.  

The  European  Council  of  December  202011  confirmed  that  the  EU  would  be  prepared  to 
continue providing financial assistance to  Syrian  refugees and host communities in  Turkey, 
and  the  Members  of  the  European  Council,  in  their  statement  of  March  202112  invited  the 
Commission  to  present  a  proposal  for  the  continuation  of  financing  for  Syrian  refugees  in 
Turkey,  as  well  as  in  Jordan,  Lebanon  and  other  parts  of  the  region.  They  also  called  for 
cooperation with Turkey on migration management to be strengthened. 

1.2. The EU response to the crisis and the establishment of the Facility 

In  2015,  the  European  Union  and  its  Member  States  decided  to  step  up  their  political  and 
financial engagement to  support Turkey in its efforts to host refugees. In answer to the call 
from EU Member States for significant additional funding to support refugees in Turkey, the 
Commission  established  the  Facility  for  Refugees  in  Turkey  by  means  of  the  Commission 
Decision of 24 November 2015, amended on 10 February 201613, and again on 14 March and 
24 July 2018. The Facility is a mechanism to coordinate the mobilisation of resources made 
available  under  both  the  EU  budget  and  additional  contributions  from  Member  States 
integrated  into  the  EU  budget  as  external  assigned  revenue.  Member  States  committed 
politically to provide national contributions in the framework of the Common Understanding 
between  EU  Member  States  and  the  European  Commission,  which  was  adopted  by  the 
representatives of the governments of the Member States on 3 February 2016, and updated on 
the  occasion  of  the  agreement  on  the  second  tranche  of  the  Facility.14  The  Common 
Understanding  also  established  a  conditionality  framework.  For  the  first  tranche  of  the 
Facility  (2016-2017)  a  total  of  EUR  3  billion  was  allocated.  The  EUR  3  billion  was  made 
available in addition to EUR 345 million15 already allocated by the Commission to Turkey in 

10 https://ec.europa.eu/transparency/regdoc/rep/10101/2021/EN/JOIN-2021-8-F2-EN-MAIN-PART-1.PDF 
11 https://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/47296/1011-12-20-euco-conclusions-en.pdf 
12 https://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/48976/250321-vtc-euco-statement-en.pdf 
13  Commission  Decision  C(2016)  60/03  of  10.02.2016  on  the  Facility  for  Refugees  in  Turkey  amending 
Commission Decision C(2015) 9500 of 24 November 2015. 
14 https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-11329-2018-INIT/en/pdf 
15  Funding  mobilised  in  the  years  2013-2015  under  the  different  external  financing  instruments,  namely  the 
Humanitarian Aid Instrument (HUMA), the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance (IPA) and the Instrument 
contributing to Stability and Peace (IcSP), including a number of actions implemented by the EU Trust Fund in 
Response to the Syrian Crisis (EUTF). 

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response  to  the  Syrian  refugee  crisis  before  the  start  of  the  Facility  and  was  additional  to 
Member  States'  bilateral  aid16.  An  additional  EUR  3  billion  was  made  available  for  the 
second  tranche  of  the  Facility  (2018-2019)  taking  the  Facility  total  to  EUR  6  billion.  The 
Facility  became  operational  on  17  February  2016  with  the  first  meeting  of  the  Facility 
Steering Committee. Following this meeting, the Commission moved rapidly to contract the 
first projects under the Facility. By 31 December 2020, the Commission had contracted the 
full  operational  envelope  of  the  Facility.  Out  of  a  total  of  EUR  6  billion,  nearly  EUR  4.1 
billion had been disbursed. In addition, EUR 585 million17 was allocated in 2020 to support 
humanitarian actions in Turkey outside the Facility, including EUR 100 million to continue 
assistance  in  the  areas  of  protection,  health  and  education,  and  EUR  485  million  under  an 
Amending Budget to continue the Emergency Social Safety Net (ESSN) and the Conditional 
Cash Transfer for Education (CCTE).  

On 18 March 2016, the Heads of State and Government of the European Union and Turkey 
reconfirmed  their  commitment  to  the  implementation  of  their  Joint  Action  Plan  and  agreed 
further  measures  aimed  at  deepening  Turkey-EU  relations  and  addressing  the  migration 
crisis18. Turkey and the European Union recognised that further, swift and determined efforts 
were needed. More specifically, the EU-Turkey Statement of 18 March 2016 (hereafter ‘the 
Statement’) called inter alia for putting an end to the irregular migration from Turkey to the 
EU by breaking the business model of the smugglers and offering migrants an alternative to 
putting their lives at risk, and for the speeding up of the implementation of the Facility. 

The implementation  of the Statement continued to play  a key  role in  the  course of 2020 in 
ensuring  that  migration  challenges  were  addressed  effectively  and  jointly  by  the  EU  and 
Turkey. Following the events at the border between Greece and Turkey in February 2020, on 
9  March  European  Council  President  Charles  Michel  and  European  Commission  President 
Ursula von der Leyen met with the President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan. They agreed 
to review the implementation of the 2016 EU-Turkey Statement of which the Facility is a key 
component.  Discussions  continued  until  the  summer  under  the  auspices  of  the  EU  High 
Representative and Commission Vice President Josep Borrell and Turkish Foreign Minister 
Cavusoglu. 

The  total  number  of  arrivals  from  Turkey  into  the  EU  in  2020  was  18  736  compared  to 
75 974  in  2019  (75%  decrease).  13 979  arrivals  were  recorded  to  Greece  in  comparison  to 
73 627 in 2019 (81% decrease); 4 191 to  Italy compared to 1 854 in 2019 (126% increase); 
232  to  Bulgaria  and  334  by  boat  directly  to  the  government-controlled  areas  of  Cyprus, 
compared  to  199  and  294  respectively  in  2019.  At  the  same  time,  the  Cypriot  authorities 
registered  increasing  arrivals  from  Turkey  through  crossings  of  the  Green  Line.  Overall, 
5 900  irregular  migrants  arrived  to  Cyprus  either  directly  from  Turkey  or  via  the  areas  not 

16 Since the beginning of the crisis, the EU has mobilised all political and humanitarian tools at its disposal in 
support  of  the  Syrian  people,  with  EUR  24.9  billion  of  humanitarian,  stabilisation  and  resilience  assistance 
collectively  mobilised  since  the  onset  of  the  crisis  in  2011  https://eeas.europa.eu/headquarters/headquarters-
homepage/93313/node/93313_en. 
17 The total amount reflects both operational costs i.e. EUR 581.7 million and administrative costs i.e. EUR 3.3 
million. 
18 http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2016/03/18-eu-turkey-statement/ 

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under the effective control of the Government of the Republic of Cyprus in 2020. This figure 
stood at 7 800 in 2019. 

Turkey  continued  to  face  migratory  pressure,  albeit  considerably  lower  than  in  2019.  The 
substantial drop of arrivals from Turkey in 2020 was due to the consequences of the COVID-
19 pandemic. While arrivals from Turkey to Greece in January and February 2020 were 49% 
and 22% higher compared to 2019, the measures taken as of March both inside  Turkey and 
on its external borders had a clear impact on movements and travel.  

Although Turkey reiterated its commitment to the effective implementation of the Statement, 
on 28 February 2020 the Turkish government announced it would cease controlling its  land 
and sea borders with Europe and open the passage for migrants wishing to cross. This led to 
the  setting  up  of  an  informal  camp  along  the  land  border  with  Greece,  which  ended  up 
hosting close to 25 000 migrants and refugees.  Starting on 30 March, the Turkish authorities 
organised transport for the migrants and refugees out of the border area and closed the border 
with Greece and Bulgaria except for commercial traffic because of COVID-19. The Turkish 
authorities indicated that they acted within the framework of the public health precautions in 
place,  and  that  this  move  did  not  mean  a  change  in  Turkey's  policy  to  allow  irregular 
migrants’ exit over its borders. Migrants would be free to approach the Greek border once the 
COVID-19 precautions were lifted, as the Turkish government had no intention of preventing 
anyone wishing to do so from leaving Turkey. 

Implementation  of  the  ‘One-for-One’  resettlement  scheme  under  the  Statement  continued. 
Between April 2016 and February 2021, 28 621 Syrian refugees were resettled from Turkey 
to the EU. Although resettlement operations worldwide were suspended temporarily between 
April and June 2020 due to the COVID-19 health crisis, 2 422 people were resettled in 2020 
(around half of them after the resumption of operations, i.e. between July and December). 

Since 2016, under the Statement, 2 140 migrants have been returned from the Greek islands 
to Turkey, while only 139 migrants were returned in 2020. On 16 March 2020, the Turkish 
authorities suspended return operations under the Statement due to the COVID-19 pandemic 
until  further  notice.  Although  resettlements  from  Turkey  resumed  as  of  July  2020,  returns 
from  Greece  remain  suspended  to  date.  Responding  to  repeated  requests  from  the  Greek 
authorities  and  the  European  Commission  regarding  the  resumption  of  return  operations, 
Turkey has stressed that conditions for the resumption of operations have not been met. 

The  Voluntary  Humanitarian  Admissions  Scheme  which  is  expected  to  be  activated  once 
irregular  crossings  between  Turkey  and  the  EU  end  or  at  least  have  been  substantially  and 
sustainably reduced, has not yet been activated by the Member States. 

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COVID-19  

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact in Turkey. At the outbreak 
of the crisis in Turkey in March 2020, the Commission contacted the Turkish authorities to 
inquire  whether  any  specific  support  to  their  response  was  required.  They  confirmed  their 
intention to continue with the projects under the Facility and regular bilateral IPA assistance 
as originally programmed. In close consultation with the Turkish authorities, the Commission 
agreed to the mobilisation of Facility savings for COVID-19 related purposes in the form of 
top-ups to existing projects rather than new projects. The Commission also contacted Facility 
implementing  partners  for  their  assessment  of  the  COVID-19  fall-out  for  Facility  projects. 
Further to this consultation, the implementation period for projects under the 2016 EUR 1.6 
billion  Special  Measure  was  extended  to  June  2023,  which  should  allow  for  all  projects 
concerned to reach their stated objectives.   

By  end-2020,  some  EUR  65  million  had  been  redirected  to  health  care  interventions  and 
socio-economic  support  measures  to  mitigate  the  COVID-19  impact  under  the  Facility  for 
Refugees  (out  of  the  total  COVID-19  interventions  under  the  EU’s  financial  instruments, 
which amounts to EUR  105 million). Actions included the activation of a EUR 4.7 million 
contingency  reserve  of  the  SIHHAT  I  project  to  equip  Migrant  Health  Centres  with 
protective  equipment  and  disinfectants.  Furthermore,  under  the  humanitarian  leg  of  the 
Facility,  over  EUR  50  million  was  reallocated  to  provide  humanitarian  response  following 
COVID-19  throughout  a  range  of  projects.  In  particular,  both  the  ESSN  and  the  CCTE 
provided  top-up  cash  support  for  their  beneficiaries.  Under  the  ESSN,  two  top-ups  of  500 
Turkish Lira (TL) each were provided in the month of June and July 2020 for more than 1.7 
million individual refugees (810 000 households), for a total of over EUR 47 million. Under 
the  CCTE  education  project,  a  top  up  of  85  TL  was  provided  to  all  CCTE  eligible 
beneficiaries  regardless  of  age  and  grade  as  a  one-off  payment  on  30  November  2020.  In 
total, 535 000 children benefited from this extra top up. In addition, cash assistance to 20 000 
non-ESSN  beneficiary  households  was  also  provided  through  a  nationwide  operation 
implemented by UNHCR together with  the Directorate General  for Migration Management 
(DGMM), with a EUR 8 million contribution from humanitarian funding outside the Facility. 
Under the EU Trust Fund in Response to the Syria Crisis, COVID-19 assistance focused on 
procurement of personal protective equipment, online and distance learning, job-placements 
and psychosocial support. 

2.  The functioning of the Facility  

The  Facility  is  a  coordination  mechanism  that  allows  for  the  swift,  effective  and  efficient 
mobilisation  of  EU  assistance  to  refugees  in  Turkey.  The  Facility  ensures  the  optimal 
mobilisation  of  existing  EU  financing  instruments,  as  humanitarian  and/or  development 
assistance,  to  address  the  needs  of  refugees  and  host  communities  in  a  comprehensive  and 
coordinated manner19. 

19 Commission Decision C(2015) 9500 of 24.11.2015, Article 2 – Objectives of the Facility.  

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The Steering Committee of the Facility provides strategic guidance on the priorities, the type 
of actions to  be supported, the amounts  to  be allocated and the financing  instruments  to  be 
mobilised  -  and  when  appropriate,  on  the  conditions  relating  to  the  implementation  of 
Turkey’s  commitments  under  the  EU-Turkey  Joint  Action  Plan  of  29  November  2015 
(hereafter the ‘Joint Action Plan’).20  In 2020, the fifth year of implementation of the Facility, 
one  Steering  Committee  meeting  took  place,  on  5  November  2020.  Due  to  the  COVID-19 
pandemic this meeting was held virtually. 

The  key  principles  guiding  the  Facility's  implementation  are  speed,  efficiency  and 
effectiveness,  while  ensuring  sound  financial  management.  Sustainability  of  Facility 
interventions  and  co-ownership  by  the  Turkish  authorities  are  also  important.  The 
identification of priority areas for assistance was based on a comprehensive and independent 
needs assessment  21, paying particular attention to vulnerable groups. The needs assessment 
was updated in 201822. 

The  Facility  coordinates  financing  from  the  following  external  financing  instruments23: 
humanitarian aid24, the European Neighbourhood Instrument25, the Development Cooperation 
Instrument26,  the  Instrument  for  Pre-accession  Assistance  (IPA)27  and  the  Instrument 
contributing  to  Stability  and  Peace28.  Measures  financed  by  the  Union's  budget  are 
implemented in accordance with its financial rules and regulations applicable to both direct 
and indirect management.  

Implementation  of  assistance  is  conditional  upon  strict  compliance  by  Turkey  with  the 
undertakings of the Joint Action Plan and the Statement. 

3.  Financial capacity, duration and nature of funding 

The  total  budget  coordinated  by  the  Facility  is  EUR  6  billion,  mobilised  in  two  tranches. 
Projects under the ﬁrst tranche run until mid-2021 at the latest and under the second tranche 
until mid-2025 at the latest (most projects will ﬁnish earlier). As of end-2020, all operational 
funds have been committed and contracted under both tranches.  

20 See Article 5 (1) of Commission Decision C(2015) 9500, as amended by Commission Decision C(2016)855. 
21 https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/sites/near/files/2016_needs_assessment_.pdf  
22 https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/sites/near/files/updated_needs_assessment.pdf  
23 The European Neighbourhood Instrument and the Development Cooperation Instrument (DCI) contributions 
were respectively transferred to and implemented under the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance and the EU 
Trust Fund. In principle, all Facility contributions to the EUTF (from IPA and to a minor extent from DCI) were 
implemented as non-humanitarian assistance. 
24 Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 concerning humanitarian aid, OJ L163, 2.7.1996, p. 1. 
25  Regulation  (EU)  No  232/2014  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  establishing  a  European 
Neighbourhood Instrument, OJ L 77, 15.3.2014, p. 27.  
26  Regulation  (EU)  No  233/2014  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  establishing  a  financing 
instrument for development cooperation, OJ L 77, 15.3.2014, p. 44. 
27 Regulation (EU) No 231/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing an Instrument for 
Pre-accession Assistance, OJ L 77, 15.3.2014, p. 11. 
28  Regulation  (EU)  No  230/2014  of  the  European  Parliament  and  of  the  Council  establishing  an  instrument 
contributing to stability and peace, OJ L 77, 15.3.2014, p. 1. 

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Exceptionally, due to the COVID-19 crisis, the implementation period for projects under the 
2016  EUR  1.6  billion  Special  Measure  was  extended  until  June  2023,  allowing  for  all 
projects concerned to reach their stated objectives.   

The first tranche amounted to EUR 3 billion, of which EUR 1 billion was mobilised from the 
EU budget and EUR 2 billion in bilateral contributions from the Member States29. Likewise, 
the  second  tranche  amounted  to  EUR  3  billion,  of  which  the  EU  budget  provided  EUR  2 
billion and the Member States EUR 1 billion30.  

As concerns EU budget resources, of the EUR 1 billion from the EU budget for 2016-2017, 
EUR 250 million was mobilised in 2016 and EUR 750 million in 2017. Of the EUR 2 billion 
from  the  EU  budget  for  2018-2019,  EUR  550  million  was  mobilised  in  2018,  with  the 
balance mobilised in 2019. 

As for Member States’ contributions,  for the first  tranche, Member States contributed EUR 
677 million to the Facility in 2016, EUR 847 million in 2017, EUR 396 million in 2018 and 
EUR 80 million in 2019. For the second tranche, Member States contributed EUR 68 million 
in  2018,  EUR  202  million  in  2019  and  EUR  265  million  in  2020,  with  the  remaining 
payments  planned  until  2023.  Member  States'  contributions  are  made  directly  to  the  EU 
Budget  in  the  form  of  external  assigned  revenue  pursuant  to  Article  21(2)(a)(ii)  of  the 
Financial  Regulation  and  assigned  to  the  budget  lines  of  the  Instrument  for  Pre-accession 
Assistance and of the Humanitarian Aid. 

A satisfactory match between the rate of Member States' payments of their contributions into 
the  Facility  and  the  rate  of  disbursements  financed  by  those  contributions  from  the  Facility 
continues. 

Under  the  humanitarian  strand  of  the  Facility,  EUR  19.50  million  was  earmarked  as  buffer 
capacity for possible funding of responses to the influx of new refugees from Syria in 2019. 
Since the buffer was  not used in  2019, this amount  was contracted in  2020  to  cover health 
and protection actions, completing the programming exercise for the second tranche.  

The  Commission  has  continued  humanitarian  assistance  also  beyond  the  funding  allocated 
under the Facility. In total to date, EUR 585 million31 was allocated to support humanitarian 
actions  in  Turkey  outside  the  Facility.  This  includes  an  initial  EUR  50  million  in 
humanitarian  assistance  allocated  in  April  2020  by  the  Commission  from  the  yearly 
humanitarian budget to continue assistance in the areas of protection, health and education in 
emergencies,  and  an  additional  EUR  50  million  allocated  in  November  2020  for  the 
continuation  of  the  aforamentioned  projects.  Also,  in  July  2020,  the  budgetary  authority 
approved and allocated another EUR 485 million under an Amending Budget to continue two 

29 The total distribution of Member States' contribution is available at 
http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2016/02/03/refugee-facility-for-turkey/. 
30  https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2018/06/29/facility-for-refugees-in-turkey-member-
states-agree-details-of-additional-funding/  
31 The total amount reflects both operational costs i.e. EUR 581.7 million and administrative costs i.e. EUR 3.3 
million. 

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Facility  flagship  projects i.e. the Emergency Social  Safety Net  (ESSN) and the Conditional 
Cash Transfer for Education (CCTE).  

By 31 December 2020, the Commission had contracted the full operational envelope of the 
Facility. Out of a total of EUR 6 billion, more than EUR 4 billion had been disbursed.  

4.  Implementation of the Facility 

The  Facility  is  implemented  as  humanitarian  and  development  assistance.  Under  the  first 
tranche roughly EUR 1.4 billion and EUR 1.6 billion were allocated to the respective strands. 
Given  the  protracted  nature  of  the  Syria  crisis,  interventions  under  the  second  tranche 
increasingly  focus  on  socio-economic  support  activities  and  the  creation  of  livelihood 
opportunities. Under the second tranche, EUR 1.04 billion has been allocated to humanitarian 
assistance, and EUR 1.9 billion to development assistance.32 

For  the  Facility  overall,  the  breakdown  of  humanitarian  and  development  assistance  is  as 
follows:  

Amount committed 

41% 

Development Assistance

59% 

Humanitarian
Assistance

Full details can be obtained from the online projects table33. 

Programming of the Facility was completed in December 2019, and as of end-2020 the full 
operational envelope of EUR 6 billion had been contracted, out of which EUR 4.072 billion 
had been disbursed.    

It is important to note that assistance provided within the framework of the Facility is project-
based. Disbursements depend on progress in the implementation of Facility interventions.  

Particular attention is paid to non-Syrian refugees and asylum seekers. Facility interventions 
always aim to involve the local communities hosting refugees.  

32 The balance of EUR 60 million is allocated to administrative and operational support to Facility 
implementation 
33 https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/sites/near/files/facility_table.pdf 

8 

 
 
 
                                                           
Humanitarian  assistance  supports  the  most  vulnerable  refugees  through  the  provision  of 
predictable  and  dignified  support  addressing  basic  needs  and  protection.  It  also  addresses 
gaps in service provision through specialised agencies and partners in health and education in 
emergencies.  EU  humanitarian  aid  is  guided  by  the  European  Consensus  on  Humanitarian 
Aid  of  200734,  which  stipulates  that  the  EU  as  a  humanitarian  actor  adheres  to  the 
humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence, as set out in 
Article 214 of the TFEU and in the Humanitarian Aid Regulation (No. 1257/96)35,36.  

Under the humanitarian strand of the Facility, a total of 65 projects have been implemented 
through 21 partners under both the first and the second tranche. These projects aim to cover 
the response to basic needs, protection, education, and health for the most vulnerable refugees 
in  Turkey.  Under  the  first  tranche  around  EUR  1.4  billion  was  allocated  and  contracted  in 
humanitarian  assistance  and  EUR  1.3  billion  was  disbursed,  while  for  the  second  tranche, 
EUR  1.04  billion  has  been  contracted  and  by  31  January  2021,  EUR  964  million  was 
disbursed. 

Development assistance supports the longer-term needs in the fields of health, education and 
socio-economic  development  of  refugees,  notably  in  terms  of  access  to  public  services  and 
livelihood  opportunities,  and  municipal  infrastructure.  It  also  focuses  on  vulnerable  groups 
and  includes  a  gender  dimension  in  its  interventions,  e.g.  protection  of  women  and  girls 
against  sexual  and  gender  based  violence  and  improving  access  to  sexual  and  reproductive 
health care.  

Under the development  strand of the  Facility, the implementation  of 26  projects  contracted 
under  the  first  tranche  continued  to  show  good  progress.  Of  these  projects,  15  were 
implemented under the EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis (EUTF) for 
a  total  of  EUR  293  million,  in  addition  to  the  allocation  managed  directly  through  the 
Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance37. 

Disbursements to implementing partners reached EUR 1.75 billion out of a total of EUR 3.5 
billion  allocated  to  development  assistance  under  both  tranches  of  the  Facility38.  Under  the 
second tranche, the allocated EUR 1.9 billion was fully contracted in December 2020, out of 
which EUR 418 million had been disbursed by end-February. Under the development strand 
of the Facility there are 16 new contracts. 

Facility interventions per priority area 

34 Joint Statement by the Council and the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States.  
35 Council Regulation (EC) No 1257/96 of 20 June 1996 concerning humanitarian aid. 
36  The  European  Commission's  humanitarian  aid  is  based  on  annual  country-specific  Humanitarian 
Implementation Plans (HIPs). The framework for cooperation between the Commission and its partners in the 
area  of  humanitarian  aid  is  established  by  the  Commission's  Financial  and  Administrative  Framework 
Agreements  with  international  organisations  and  Framework  Partnership  Agreements  with  non-governmental 
organisations. 
37 Funds  from the Instrument  for Pre-accession  Assistance  under the  Facility are  managed in accordance  with 
the  rules  for  external  action  contained  in  Title  IV  of  part  two  of  the  Financial  Regulation  and  its  Rules  of 
Application. 
38  This  figure  includes  also  disbursements  under  projects  implemented  by  the  EU  Regional  Trust  Fund  in 
Response to the Syrian Crisis, but not yet charged to the EU budget. 

9 

 
 
                                                           
Progress  per  priority  area  in  the  programming  and  implementation  of  assistance  financed 
under both tranches of the Facility is as follows: 

Education 

The  Facility  has  allocated  more  than  EUR  1.5  billion  to  the  priority  area  of  education, 
including EUR 545 million39 for educational infrastructure.  

Under the humanitarian strand of the Facility, more than EUR 181 million was allocated to 
education. The Conditional Cash Transfer for Education (CCTE) continues to be successfully 
implemented, and supports school enrolment and attendance of refugee children through the 
provision of monthly payments to refugee families, on the condition that pupils attend school 
regularly.  Facility  support  for  the  CCTE  ended  in  October  2020.  However  the  CCTE 
programme  can  continue  until  early  2022  following  the  EUR  85  million  top-up  provided 
under  the  Amending  Budget  agreed  by  the  EU  budgetary  authority  in  July  2020.  As  of 
December  2020,  nearly  670,000  children  had  benefited  at  least  once  from  the  CCTE 
programme,  and  90%  of  all  refugee  children  enrolled  in  education  benefit  from  the  CCTE. 
Humanitarian  funding  has  also  supported  non-formal  education  (Accelerated  Learning 
Programmes) and school enrolment for out-of-school under the first and second tranches of 
the Facility.    

As concerns Facility development assistance, a follow-up direct grant (known as PIKTES40) 
to  the  Ministry  of  National  Education  (MoNE)  of  EUR  400  million  started  implementation 
towards the end of the second quarter of 2019 in support of efforts by the Ministry to increase 
the integration and access to high-quality education for Syrian children. By the end of June 
2020,  686,581  Syrian  children  were  enrolled  in  education  for  the  2019-2020  school  year 
under PIKTES. Substantial progress has been made in rolling out Early Childhood Education 
(ECE),  with  a  total  of  115,133  children  supported,  with  a  roughly  equal  number  of  Syrian 
refugee  and  host  community  children.  The  number  of  Syrian  children  and  youth  who 
completed back-up (remedial) and catch-up classes increased from 80,243 to 90,233. In terms 
of support to the education system’s teaching capacity, a total of 3,954 educational personnel 
have  been  supported  through  salaries  or  other  financial  incentives  and  177,019  education 
staff  had  received  training  to  enable  them  to  respond  to  the  particular  needs  of  refugee 
children. During the second quarter of 2020, teacher trainings have been focusing on remote 
teaching, providing psycho-social  support to  Syrian children and  enhancing communication 
with children and families during the pandemic period. In June 2020, 3,886 PIKTES teachers 
received  online  in-service  trainings  focusing  on  distance  education  supporting  children’s 
well-being during the pandemic and on how to conduct the EBA41 live classes.  

The  Accelerated  Learning  programme  (ALP),  jointly  implemented  by  UNICEF  and  MoNE 
under  humanitarian  funding,  has  shown  good  progress,  with  19,881  learners  enrolled  by 
January 2020. The provision of scholarships to attend higher education support has also made 
progress. Up to 1,332 scholarships to attend higher education institutions had been provided 

39 This includes a EUR 40 million clean energy project under the EUTF (FRIT 1). 
40 Promoting Integration of Syrian Kids into the Education System (PIKTES) 
41 Educational Informatics Network 

10 

 
 
                                                           
to refugees by June 2020, out of which 19 for refugee children with disabilities. The Facility 
has  continued  to  support  educational  infrastructure  development  and  reduce  school 
overcrowding.  Over  3,900  educational  facilities  (including  ECE  centres)  were  upgraded  by 
June 2020. The majority of the upgrades consisted of the provision of refurbishment and/or 
equipment to 2,120 pre-schools. The number of new schools constructed increased from 40 to 
102  by  the  end  of  December  2020.  The  construction  of  around  260  schools  continues.  In 
addition, a EUR 40 million clean energy project contracted under the first tranche provides 
energy via two solar farms and rooftop panels to 120 schools. Roof top installation for three 
schools  have  been  completed.  The  negative  impact  of  COVID-19-related  measures  on  the 
construction sector necessitated an extension of the implementation period until mid-2023. 

Protection 

A total of some EUR 211 million has been allocated to protection under the Facility, mainly 
via projects under the humanitarian strand.   

The  humanitarian  strand  of  the  Facility  has  supported  the  registration  and  verification  of 
refugees to regularise their status in Turkey and facilitate their access to services. In addition 
to  standalone  protection  interventions  aimed  to  fill  gaps  and  respond  to  specific  needs  and 
individuals  at  risk,  protection  has  also  been  mainstreamed  into  the  other  pillars  of  the 
humanitarian  response  strategy  (basic  needs,  health  and  education).  The  overall  aim  is  to 
better  address  refugees’  vulnerabilities,  regularise  their  status  and  link  them  to  a  wider 
network of public and UN/NGO services. In addition, projects financed through the EU Trust 
Fund  in  response  to  the  Syrian  Crisis  included  assistance  to  the  reception  of  refugees  in 
community centres and further referrals for vulnerable refugees to adequate services. 

Under the Special Measure of July 2019, a direct grant to the Ministry of Family, Labour and 
Social  Services  for  an  amount  of  EUR  20  million  was  contracted  at  the  end  of  2020.  The 
project aims to improve the provision of preventive and protective social services to the most 
vulnerable  refugees  and  host  community  members.  It  builds  on  humanitarian  support 
provided  under  the  Facility  to  date,  bridging  humanitarian  and  development  cooperation  as 
set out by the strategic orientations of the Facility under the second tranche. 

The direct grant is in the inception phase. The selection of the technical assistance team, the 
setting-up of the project office and the fine-tuning of the project documentation package are 
ongoing. The EU Delegation and ECHO’s field office staff started to hold regular meetings in 
order to bridge the transition from the first to the second tranche of the Facility. 

Health 

Under the Facility EUR 800 million has been allocated to the priority area of health.   

The main pillar of Facility support is the SIHHAT 1 project, a EUR 300 million direct grant 
with  the  Turkish  Ministry  of  Health  (MoH),  which  supports  the  Ministry  in  its  efforts  to 
provide  free  and  equitable  access  to  health  care  to  3.6  million  refugees.  The  number  of 
functional Migrant Health Centres (MHCs) has reached 177 and 3,420 healthcare personnel 
of  Syrian  origin  are  currently  on  the  payroll  of  the  project.  The  pace  of  project 
implementation continues to be satisfactory with tangible results in the field. The contingency 
reserve of EUR 4.7 million to address COVID-19-related needs was released in April 2020. 

11 

 
 
A two months no-cost extension was required until 31 January 2021 to fully implement some 
important  activities.  In  parallel,  a  World  Health  Organization  (WHO)  project  previously 
funded under the humanitarian strand, was continued under the EUTF and includes support to 
migrant  health  training  centres,  training  for  Syrian  medical  personnel  and  certification  of 
Syrian doctors and nurses to work in the Migrant Health Centres.  

The follow-up project SIHHAT 2 (EUR 210 million) - “Supporting Migrant Health Services 
in Turkey” - was signed with the MoH in December 2020 to ensure synchronisation with the 
end of SIHHAT 1 and the continuation of refugee health care services until end-2023. A EUR 
90  million  contract  to  procure  complementary  small-scale  health  infrastructure  and 
equipment was signed with the Council of Europe’s Development Bank (CEB) in December 
2020.  The  duration  of  contracts  for  the  construction  of  two  Facility-funded  hospitals  (total 
EUR  90  million,  with  Agence  Française  de  Développement  -  AFD  -    and  the  CEB)  in  the 
provinces  of  Kilis  and  Hatay  funded  under  the  first  tranche  are  being  extended  to  reflect 
implementation time lost due to COVID-19.  

Humanitarian partners still operate a limited number of static and mobile services to respond 
to urgent and unmet health care needs,  especially in the field of physiotherapy and physical 
rehabilitation.  Some  specialised  health  services  such  as  mental  health  and  psychosocial 
support (MHPSS) were integrated into the SIHHAT 1 as of December 2020, while most of 
the  sexual  and  reproductive  health  (SRH)  and  sexual  and  gender-based  violence  (SGBV) 
activities  had  already  been  integrated  into  SIHHAT  1  in  October  2019,  in  line  with  the 
Facility transition strategy.  

Concerns persist with regard to access to health services of refugees outside of their original 
province of registration or those on the move, which is limited to vaccinations and emergency 
services.  This  negatively  affects  refugees  on  the  move,  seasonal  workers  and  refugees  who 
settled in  other provinces. The Commission  closely follows the policy changes and aims to 
reach  the  refugee  population  affected  via  mobile  healthcare  activities  under  the  SIHHAT 
projects. 

Municipal infrastructure 

EUR 380 million was allocated to this priority area under the second tranche of the Facility.   

Following  the  Call  for  expression  of  interest  launched  in  December  2018,  a  number  of 
projects  were  provisionally  selected  for  financing  under  the  second  tranche.  Negotiations 
with  AFD  for  a  first  contract  were  concluded  successfully  in  December  2019  and  an 
addendum was signed in December 2020. A second contract with the World Bank was signed 
in  September  2020.  These  projects  include  actions  to  improve  access  to  and  the  quality  of 
municipal services in the areas of water supply, wastewater and solid waste management in 
areas  most  affected  by  the  refugee  influx.  In  addition,  negotiations  were  concluded  with 
Kreditanstalt  für  Wiederaufbau  (KfW)  and  a  contract  of  EUR  25  million  for  recreational 
infrastructure in support of social cohesion was signed in July 2020. The construction of one 
mechanical biological waste treatment facility in Gaziantep continues under a EUTF project 
implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). 

Basic needs and socio-economic support  

12 

 
 
More  than  EUR  2.83  billion  has  been  allocated  to  basic  needs  and  socio-economic  support 
under the Facility.  

Interventions in  this priority  area aim to  ensure that  the basic needs of the most vulnerable 
refugees are met, and that refugee resilience and self-reliance are strengthened. This should 
allow for a gradual transition from dependence on social assistance to increased self-reliance 
and livelihood opportunities.     

Under  the  Facility’s  basic  needs  assistance  more  than  2.6  million  refugees  have  received 
support  allowing  them  to  live  in  dignity.  Most  support  is  provided  through  the  Emergency 
Social Safety Net (ESSN), a humanitarian social assistance programme that delivers monthly, 
unrestricted,  multi-purpose  cash  via  a  debit  card  system,  now  with  more  than  1.8  million 
vulnerable  refugee  beneficiaries.  Under  the  recent  agreement  with  the  International 
Federation of the Red Cross/Red Crescent for ESSN 3, EUR 500 million in Facility funding 
was allocated to this flagship programme at the end of 2019. Current basic needs support for 
refugees in Turkey under the ESSN 3 is scheduled to end in March 2021. With a top-up of 
EUR  400  million  outside  the  Facility  approved  by  the  budgetary  authority  in  July  2020  as 
part of the  Amending Budget referred to earlier, the continuation of ESSN support is ensured 
until at least end-2021.42   

In line with the Facility transition strategy and given the protracted nature of the Syria crisis, 
Facility  interventions  under  the  development  strand  have  increasingly  focused  on  socio-
economic support activities and the creation of livelihood opportunities. In order to continue 
supporting basic needs of the most vulnerable, in December 2020 the Commission signed a 
contract for a EUR 245 million direct grant with the Ministry of Family, Labour and Social 
Services  to  allow  for  the  provision  of  monthly  financial  support  comparable  with  social 
assistance  provided  to  vulnerable  individuals  under  the  Turkish  social  security  system. 
Following  a  preparatory  phase,  payments  to  beneficiaries  should  start  in  July  2021.  The 
project should run in parallel with the ESSN and provide support to households with single 
parents,  the  elderly,  and    disabled  and  severely  disabled  individuals.  The  selection  of  the 
project management team has almost been completed, and the setting-up of the project office 
and fine-tuning of the project  documentation package are ongoing. The EU Delegation and 
ECHO’s  field  office  staff  have  started  regular  meetings  in  order  to  coordinate  the  parallel 
implementation of the ESSN and the direct grant. 

Additional  socio-economic  support  continues  to  be  provided  to  refugees  with  a  profile  that 
would  enable  them  to  access  the  labour  market.  This  support  aims  to  increase  refugee 
employability  and  provides  for  vocational  and  skills  training,  language  training,  job 
counselling,  on-the-job  training  programmes  and  the  simplification  of  the  work  permits 
process to support both Syrian refugees and host communities. Small grants to entrepreneurs 
and entrepreneurship training are provided to both Syrian refugee and host community start-
ups  and  existing  entrepreneurs  in  cooperation  with  the  Small  and  Medium-sized  Industry 
Development  Organisation  of  Turkey  (KOSGEB).  A  further  project  currently  implemented 

42 https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20200706IPR82727/meps-approve-EU585-million-to-
support-syrian-refugees-in-neighbouring-countries  

13 

 
 
                                                           
by  the  World  Bank  supports  the  development  and  implementation  of  a  female-led  social 
entrepreneurship  model  to  provide  a  sustainable  income  generating  activity  for  both 
vulnerable  Syrian  refugees  and  Turkish  women.  Projects  should  run  until  mid-2025  at  the 
latest.  

Further to the 2018 Call for expressions of interest to implementing partners, two contracts 
were  signed  in  December  2019  with  Expertise  France  and  the  International  Centre  for 
Migration Policy Development (ICMPD). These contracts aim to provide support to start-ups 
and micro and small businesses in the form of micro-grants and entrepreneurial coaching and 
mentoring, and vocational training and apprenticeships. In September 2020, the Commission 
signed  four  additional  contracts  with  the  World  Bank  for  activities  that  aim  to  increase 
employability  and  skills  development  of  refugees  and  host  communities,  improve  services 
provided  in  relation  to  vocational  education  and  training  and  market  supply  and  demand 
matching,  and  create  a  conducive  environment  for  business  growth,  registration  and 
expansion  as  well  as  support  the  employment  creation  in  the  agricultural  sector.  Activities 
target  both  refugees  and  host  communities  in  an  effort  to  spur  social  cohesion  and  fight 
stereotypes leading to social tension. The signature of the four contracts took place after the 
timely  conclusion of a new Framework Agreement  between the European Commission  and 
the  World  Bank  governing  all  EU  financed  operations.  In  addition,  the  signature  of  two 
additional contracts with KfW took place in November and December 2020 respectively, and 
a small top-up to the ICMPD project funded with savings from the Call was also negotiated 
in 2020. 

Migration management  

The Facility has funded two projects in this priority area under the first tranche for a total of 
EUR 80 million.  

A first project provided EU support to strengthen the capacity of the Turkish Coast Guard to 
carry out search and rescue operations. The second project aimed to support the Directorate 
General  for  Migration  Management  (DGMM)  in  its  management  of  returns  from  the  EU. 
Both projects have been completed, with the second project coming to an end in December 
2019.  

Gender aspects within projects under the Facility 

The  Commission  is  committed  to  implement  the  EU  Gender  Action  Plan  II  (GAP) 
“Transforming  the  Lives  of  Girls  and  Women  through  EU  External  Relations  2016-2020” 
and  EU  Gender  Action  Plan  III  “Together  towards  a  gender  equal  world  2021-2025”  on 
strengthening  gender  equality  and  women’s  empowerment  in  EU  external  action.  In  this 
context,  the  promotion,  protection  and  fulfilment  of  human  rights  for  women  and  girls, 
gender  equality  and  women’s  and  girls’  empowerment  are  overarching  EU  priorities  and 
objectives, which guide Facility interventions. 

More  specifically,  the  humanitarian  strand  of  the  Facility  is  governed  by  ECHO’s  2013 
gender policy ‘Gender in Humanitarian Aid: different needs, adapted response’. This implies 
calls on partners to conduct gender analysis at the onset of a programme, to adapt programme 

14 

 
 
design and implementation according to the differential risks and opportunities facing gender 
groups, and report on results with gender-disaggregated data. 

As  a  result,  gender-related  issues  are  taken  into  account  for  all  Facility  projects  and  are 
mainstreamed.  Facility  interventions  are  designed  to  promote  the  provision  of  equal 
opportunities for men and women, boys and girls. Gender disaggregated data are collected for 
monitoring  purposes.  Gender  mainstreaming  is  combined  with  dedicated  actions  that  have 
been  developed  to  ensure  progress  in  this  area.  The  Facility  works  with  implementing 
partners  that  have  solid  experience  with  this  approach  and  have  the  capacity  to  engage  in 
dialogue  with  the  Turkish  authorities.  These  include  the  United  Nations  Children's  Fund 
(UNICEF), UN Women and the International Labour Organisation (ILO). 

5.  Monitoring & evaluation 

The monitoring and evaluation system of the Facility was designed to be gradually rolled out 
and continuously improved. 

Results Framework  

The Facility Results Framework reflects the strategic framework of the Facility itself as well 
as  the  concrete  actions  implemented  under  the  umbrella  of  the  Facility  and  their  logical 
frameworks.  The  first  version  of  the  Results  Framework  was  developed  between  August 
2016 and March 2017 in consultation with key stakeholders, including the Facility Steering 
Committee, relevant Turkish authorities and the relevant Commission services. A first draft 
was shared with the Steering Committee in March 2017 and a revised version in November 
2018.  

In  April  2019,  the  Facility  Secretariat  launched  the  revision  process  of  the  Facility  Results 
Framework  to  update  and  align  it  with  the  revised  Facilty  strategy  and  the  priority  areas 
financed  under  the  second  tranche.  The  aim  was  to  verify  the  consistency  and  variation  of 
Results  indicators  under  the  two  tranches  and  to  enable  performance  and  results  reporting, 
both  at  output  and  outcome  level  for  the  Facility  as  a  whole.  The  final  draft  of  the  revised 
Results  Framework,  developed  in  consultation  with  implementing  partners,  including  the 
relevant Turkish authorities, was shared with the Steering Committee. Reporting against the 
revised Results Framework started in July 2020. 

Facility-level monitoring and reporting 

Facility-level  monitoring  was  launched  in  spring  2017.  Monitoring  data  are  generated  at 
output level by the implementing partners, as per their obligation under each contract. A first 
request  for  monitoring  data  was  issued  in  May  2017,  followed  by  three  reporting  cycles  in 
2017. Reporting cycles continued in 2018, 2019 and 2020. Based on this, Facility Monitoring 
Reports were released on a bi-annual basis with the most recent monitoring report covering 
the period until June 2020.43 Reporting against the revised Results Framework started as from 
1  July  2020  and  two  monitoring  and  reporting  cycles  were  launched  in  2020.  The  next  bi-
annual report should be presented at the June 2021 Steering Committee. 

43 https://ec.europa.eu/neighbourhood-enlargement/sites/default/files/201022_fmr.pdf  

15 

 
 
                                                           
Technical Assistance for monitoring 

The Commission adopted a first Commission Implementing Decision establishing a Support 
Measure on monitoring, evaluation, audit and communication of the Facility for Refugees in 
Turkey  in  May  2017.  This  enabled  the  procurement  of  technical  assistance  in  support  of 
Facility  monitoring,  both  at  action/contract  and  Facility  level.  The  technical  assistance 
contract  for  monitoring  was  signed  in  January  2018  and  is  being  implemented.  The 
assignment  has  two  distinct  parts.  The  first  consists  of  the  support  to  monitoring  and 
reporting  at  the  Facility  level.  This  comprises  a periodic  review  of  the  Results  Framework, 
the  review  of  baseline  and  target  values  and  the  indicator  calculation  methods  and  related 
guidelines.  The  technical  assistance  team  is  also  in  charge  of  supporting  the  Facility 
Secretariat  in  deriving  first-level  analysis  of  the  monitoring  data  collected  quarterly  and  in 
preparing  the  bi-annual  Facility  Monitoring  Reports.  The  second  part  of  the  assignment 
consists of support to the EU Delegation to monitor Facility-funded actions/contracts under 
the development strand, including verification of data through regular or ad hoc monitoring 
missions. Due to  the size of some  Facility interventions and the  geographical  spread of the 
activities the Delegation needs support for on-the-spot checks.  

By  the  end  of  December  2020,  161  monitoring  missions  had  been  completed:  six  results 
oriented (ROM) monitoring missions have been performed by ROM experts, 51 missions by 
the technical assistance team (SUMAF), and 104 on-the-spot checks/monitoring missions by 
the relevant EUD programme managers. 68% of all these monitoring missions were targeting 
the contracts under direct management of IPA and EUTF funds.44 

In  November  2019,  the  Commission  adopted  a  second  Support  Measure  to  complement, 
continue and build on the results achieved under the first Support Measure. The humanitarian 
pillar of the Facility is  monitored in compliance with relevant provisions. Monitoring of all 
actions  financed  under  the  Humanitarian  Implementation  Plans  (HIPs)  was  undertaken  by 
DG ECHO field staff in Turkey and by the regional DG ECHO office in Amman as well as 
by  monitoring  visits  from  HQ  staff.  Compared  to 2019  the  number  of  monitoring  missions 
was  reduced,  due  to  COVID-19  restrictions.  By  the  end  of  February  2021,  52  project-level 
monitoring missions had been completed. However, out of these 52 monitoring missions, 30 
were  performed  remotely  via  online  platforms,  while  22  were  conducted  through  in-person 
field visits. 

Evaluation 

The evaluation of Facility interventions is taking place at three different levels; action-level 
evaluations,  Facility  portfolio-type  evaluations  and  other  Facility-related  evaluations.  Five 
Facility action and portfolio-level evaluations and six Facility-related evaluations have either 
been  completed  or  are  ongoing.  In  December  2018,  the  Commission  launched  the  strategic 
mid-term evaluation of the Facility, which started in March 2019. The evaluation is to assess 
the Facility’s contribution to the priority areas of education, health, socio-economic support 
and  migration  management  over  the  period  of  2016-2019/20.  It  should  provide  relevant 

44 Cumulative figures, from 2017. 

16 

 
 
                                                           
Commission services, the Facility Steering Committee, other interested stakeholders and the 
wider  public  with  an  overall  independent  assessment  of  the  Facility’s  performance,  paying 
particular attention to its intermediate results measured against its objectives. The evaluation 
also  aims  to  capture  lessons  learned  and  provide  actionable  recommendations  to  improve 
current  and  possible  future  actions.  The  final  evaluation  report  sholud  be  presented  at  the 
June 2021 Steering Committee. 

6.  Audit 

issued 

in  November  2018, 

Following the release of the Special Report on the Facility of the European Court of Auditors 
(ECA)45 
its 
recommendations.  Good  progress  has  been  made  on  all  recommendations,  in  particular  as 
concerns  the  development  of  a  transition  strategy,  the  complementarity  of  instruments 
mobilised under the Facility and the reduction of indirect support costs. 

the  Commission  continues 

implement 

to 

7.  Communication and visibility 

From  the  very  beginning  of  the  Facility,  visibility  and  communication  have  been  key 
priorities.  The  Facility  is  central  to  conveying  the  message  of  the  EU's  continued  strong 
support  to  refugees  and  host  communities  in  Turkey.  The  2017  communication  strategy 
remains the overall framework for communication activities, aimed to enhance the visibility 
of Facility-funded actions.  

Events and ceremonies 

In 2020 and due to COVID-19, most physical events and ceremonies were  moved to online 
mediums  and  webinars.  These  included  festivals,  graduation  ceremonies,  project  opening 
events, seminars, conferences,  moved to online medium and converted into webinars, which 
all took place virtually. Several high level visits  took place in  2020 to Gaziantep, Kilis and 
Kayseri. A project opening by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 
(FAO) in Izmir in October brought together farmers with EU representatives. The year ended 
with  a  signature  ceremony  of  the  final  eight  contracts  under  the  Facility,  which  included 
several  implementing  partners  as  well  as  the  Turkish  Vice-President’s  Office.46  The  EU’s 
humanitarian  partners  implemented  several  digital  communication  activities  across  Europe, 
informing European citizens about the EU’s support to refugees in Turkey.  

In March 2020, the World Food Programme launched an exhibit in the European Parliament 
entitled Colours of Hope. For reasons to do with COVID-19, the exhibit was available only 
for  those  with  access  to  the  European  Parliament,  but  the  artwork  was  also  promoted  on 
social media. In December 2020, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent 
Societies  (IFRC)  and  DG  ECHO  launched  a  digital  communication  campaign  ‘Power  To 
Be’47 on the ESSN.  By January 2021,  the campaign  had reached over 16  million  people in 
Austria,  France,  Romania,  Spain  and  Turkey.  The  campaign  should  continue  in  the  first 

45 https://www.eca.europa.eu/Lists/ECADocuments/SR18_27/SR_TRF_EN.pdf 
46 https://www.avrupa.info.tr/en/pr/eu-completes-contracting-under-eur-6-billion-package-support-refugees-and-
host-communities 
47 https://powertobe.ifrc.org/ 

17 

 
 
                                                           
quarter  of  2021.  A  digital  campaign  run  by  UNICEF,  ‘I  choose  education’,  promoted  the 
CCTE in six EU countries and reached a total of over 24 million people. 

Media presence 

The  Facility's  humanitarian  assistance  featured  in  over  80  major  international  print  and 
audio/visual  reports  in  2020.  The  Commissioner  for  Humanitarian  Aid  and  Crisis 
Management  visited  Turkey  in  March  2020  together  with  the  EU  High  Representative  for 
Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, Josep 
Borrell. Commissioner Lenarčič visited humanitarian aid projects in Gaziantep and Kilis. A 
press point in Gaziantep resulted in reports in five national dailies and press agencies as well 
as in some 80 digital outlets. 

The use of audiovisual material to showcase Facility activities has been an important part of 
the  overall  communication  strategy.  However,  COVID-19  has  severely  impacted  the 
Commission’s and implementing partners’ communication plans, which required adaptation. 
Implementing  partners  were  encouraged  to  produce  videos  on  the  achievements  of  their 
projects through human interest stories. Between January 2020 and February 2021, over 40 
videos  were  produced  on  activities  implemented  under  the  Facility.  The  information  and 
communication teams of the EU Delegation and DG ECHO Turkey Office regularly promote 
Facility projects. These projects received wide coverage by major international broadcasters 
including TRT World, Fox TV, Anadolu Agency and others.  

8.  Conclusion and next steps 

Important progress in the mobilisation of the Facility was made in 2020. The full operational 
envelope of the Facility was contracted and more than EUR 4 billion disbursed. The Facility 
continued to provide much needed assistance to refugees and host communities in Turkey.  

The  European  Council  of  December  2020  confirmed  that  the  EU  would  be  prepared  to 
continue providing financial assistance to  Syrian  refugees and host communities in  Turkey, 
and the March 2021 European Council invited the Commission to present a proposal for the 
continuation of financing for Syrian refugees  in  Turkey, as well as in  Jordan,  Lebanon and 
other parts of the region. 

The next steps include: 

  Continuing  effective  implementation  of  all  projects  to  benefit  refugees  and  host 

communities, in line with the principles of sound financial management 

  Finalise mid-term evaluation, and follow up and implement its recommendations 
  Continuing the roll-out of Facility-related communication activities 
  Organising Facility Steering Committees in the spring and autumn of 2021 
  Considering options for further support to refugees and host communities in Turkey 

18