Turkey & Syria Earthquake Recovery Fund

CDP’s Turkey & Syria Earthquake Recovery Fund supports the most underserved and at-risk earthquake-affected families and communities as they work to rebuild and recover.

On Feb. 6, 2023, a magnitude 7.8 earthquake occurred in southern Turkey near the northern border of Syria. Approximately nine hours later, a magnitude 7.5 earthquake shook the area around 59 miles (95 kilometers) to the southwest. Dozens of large aftershocks have also occurred in both countries. The earthquakes killed more than 50,000 people and displaced almost 6 million.

The Feb. 6 earthquake was the most devastating to hit earthquake-prone Turkey in more than 20 years and was as strong as the 1939 quake, the most powerful recorded there. Additionally, Syria’s current complex humanitarian emergency is among the world’s largest humanitarian crises, and the earthquake only exacerbated its challenges and vulnerabilities.

CDP’s Turkey & Syria Earthquake Recovery Fund provides targeted grantmaking that prioritizes needs identified in collaboration with local partners. Share on X

With an intersectional racial equity lens and an emphasis on medium- and long-term recovery, CDP experts work to identify the most critical gaps in the recovery to confidently direct financial and technical support where it is needed most.

CDP has conducted extensive needs assessment and analyses in consultation with the UN agencies leading the response in Turkey and local and national governmental and nongovernmental actors.

CDP disaster experts have also visited the affected region to witness the devastation, see the progress of recovery efforts, and meet and hear first-hand from local families, communities, representatives and businesses what they need most to help them recover quickly and with dignity. So, you can be confident that your donation will have the greatest possible impact on the lives of the most underserved and at-risk people affected.

(Photo: A distant excavator works on loading and clearing rubble in Antakya, Turkey. This was once a booming metro area with housing and retail shops. Credit: Adrian Greer)

This fund supports this disaster:

2023 Turkey-Syria Earthquake

Priority funding focus areas in Turkey

Investing in local networks and community-led projects.
Livelihood and income-generating activities.
Targeting the most vulnerable and at-risk, excluded groups such as refugees, LGBTQIA+, youth, women and girls, older people, people with disabilities, etc., to meet their various recovery needs.
Improved coordination, where gaps exist and opportunities arise.

Priority funding focus areas in Syria

Provision of dignified shelter to safeguard vulnerable groups.
Provision of livelihoods and economic opportunity, including strengthening value chains and market recovery.
Education, including school rehabilitation, teacher training and return to school campaigns.
Rehabilitation of community infrastructure to re-establish services, including strategic interventions that address existing infrastructure gaps.

Cross-cutting issues prioritized for support in both countries

Localization (emphasis on partnering with local actors who have the deepest knowledge and trust within their communities).
Inclusion of particularly marginalized and at-risk groups with a special focus on people with disabilities:
- Supporting community-based, inclusive, rights-based and conflict-sensitive action that does no harm, contributes to positive change, and drives gender, age, SOGIESC and ability equality.
Disaster risk reduction and resilience.
Capacity strengthening for local organizations and networks.
Mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS).

With support from our Turkey & Syria Earthquake Recovery Fund, our grantee partners are addressing the needs of the most vulnerable, marginalized earthquake-affected families and communities.

Meet our grantee partners

Thank you to the following donors for their generous support of CDP’s Turkey & Syria Earthquake Recovery Fund.

UKG
Sullivan Family Charitable Foundation
Bill & Wendy Kortepeter
Vijay and Marie Goradia Foundation
Arc Thrift Stores
Jose Cardenas
Elizabeth and Joseph Massoud Family Foundation
FORMIA Limited
Norwest Venture Partners
Claudia C. Sullivan
Comer Family Foundation
The John P and Anne Welsh McNulty Foundation

Dmitriy Ofman
Bessemer Trust
Victor Allen
Richard Prince Studio
Beauty 21 Cosmetics, Inc.
Ginsburg Family Fund
Allison and Robert Price Family Foundation
Kate R. Colby Charitable Fund
Kingsum Charitable Fund
Gilbert Family Charitable Fund
Lauren Scott

Your support of this fund will directly and significantly impact CDP’s efforts to help communities rebuild and recover from the earthquakes and prepare for future disasters.

Support this Fund

Connect With Us

To make a donation or learn more about the fund, please contact our Development Team. If you wish to mail in a check, please send it to: Center for Disaster Philanthropy One Thomas Circle NW, Suite 700 Washington, DC 20005 (Photo: A small group of tent housing in a lot in Antakya, Turkey. Some residents do not want to go to the larger tent camps, and instead wanted to live closer to their old property. Credit: Adrian Greer)