Consultancy: Peace and Conflict Assessment, Syria

**About HelpAge**

HelpAge International, either through direct implementation or its global network of 200 members in 98 countries, is committed to supporting older people to live safe, dignified, and healthy lives. By fostering partnerships and collaborations, HelpAge ensures the inclusion of older people in all aspects of society and strives for a just and equitable world for individuals of all ages.

**Background**

Syria Context: More than a decade of conflict, combined with economic collapse, climate shocks and large-scale displacement, has severely weakened essential services and undermined social cohesion across Syria. While recent political developments have created opportunities for recovery and return, communities continue to face significant challenges, including damaged infrastructure, overstretched public services, unresolved grievances, and increasing competition over scarce resources. Fragile return dynamics, continued insecurity and recurrent violence affecting minority communities further highlight the volatility of the context.

Water, sanitation and health systems remain under significant strain. Damaged WASH infrastructure, water scarcity, drought and extreme heat are reducing access to safe water and increasing health risks, while many health facilities remain partially operational or at risk of closure. At the same time, widespread poverty, inflation and declining livelihood opportunities have eroded household coping capacities and increased vulnerabilities, particularly among older people, women and persons with disabilities. These groups continue to face significant barriers to accessing services, participating in decision-making processes and benefiting from recovery efforts.

In this context, the proposed BMZ project seeks to strengthen community resilience and support sustainable recovery through a nexus approach that links humanitarian assistance, peacebuilding and development interventions. Building on ongoing humanitarian programmes and previous experience, the project will support the rehabilitation of essential infrastructure and services, strengthen institutional capacities, promote inclusive and climate-resilient livelihoods, and foster community-based peacebuilding mechanisms. Through these efforts, the project aims to contribute to more inclusive, resilient and peaceful communities in Syria.

**Objectives**

The Peace and Conflict Assessment (PCA) aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of conflict dynamics, social cohesion factors, and peacebuilding opportunities within the project's target areas in Syria. The assessment will generate evidence to ensure that project interventions are conflict-sensitive, contextually relevant, and contribute to strengthening social cohesion, and peaceful coexistence.

**1.Analyse conflict dynamics and drivers:**

- Identify the key structural and proximate drivers of conflict, tension, and instability at national, and local levels especially in relation to project proposed intervention and locations (Idleb, Aleppo, Hama, Lattakia)
- Examine how factors such as displacement and return movements, competition over resources and services, economic hardship, governance challenges, social exclusion, and climate-related pressures influence local conflict dynamics.

**2. Map conflict actors and stakeholder relationships:**

- Identify key stakeholders, power holders, institutions, community groups, and other actors that influence conflict, cooperation, decision-making processes, and project implementation.
- Analyse relationships, interests, capacities, and potential areas of cooperation or tension among different groups.

**3.Assess social cohesion capacities:**

- Examine existing mechanisms that support peaceful coexistence, conflict resolution, community resilience, and collective action.
- Assess the capacities of communities, local authorities, civil society organisations, and service providers to manage disputes and respond to emerging tensions.

**4.Assess risks related to project interventions:**

- Identify potential risks that project activities may inadvertently exacerbate existing tensions, inequalities, exclusion, or conflict dynamics.
- Analyse conflict sensitivity considerations across the project's sectors, including health, WASH, livelihoods, and community-based peacebuilding activities.

**5.Identify opportunities for peacebuilding and social cohesion:**

- Identify entry points for strengthening trust, dialogue, participation, and cooperation between communities, local institutions, returnees, internally displaced persons, and host populations.
- Explore opportunities to integrate peacebuilding outcomes within service delivery, livelihoods, and local governance interventions.

**6.Support HDP Nexus programming:**

- Provide practical recommendations for integrating humanitarian, development, and peacebuilding approaches within project implementation.
- Inform programme design, targeting, partnership approaches, monitoring sy