On 6 February 2023, twin earthquakes struck Türkiye and Syria, killing thousands of people and injuring many others.
In support of the government-led response, UN Women Türkiye, together with public authorities, civil society organizations, other UN agencies and private sector partners, mounted a swift response targeting the most at-risk women and girls.
In close coordination with partners, UN Women Türkiye’s emergency response is addressing the urgent and longer-term needs of women and girls impacted by the earthquakes. The response covers urgent needs such as the distribution of essential supplies, psycho-social support, and critical information on rights and services. Beyond the immediate assistance, UN Women is preparing programs to support the restoration of women’s livelihoods, such as support to women’s businesses and cooperatives.
UN Women Türkiye is also working closely with the rest of the UN system to ensure that the overall urgent and longer-term response fully considers the needs and priorities of women and girls. In order to achieve this, UN Women advocates for women’s agency and equal participation at every level of the response and works towards mainstreaming their perspective across the earthquake response.
The publication gives brief information about the UN Women's efforts in respond to the earthquake, its UN inter-agency coordination role regarding gender expertise and its programmatic interventions.
by Asya Varbanova, UN Women Turkiye Country Director
This year’s International Women’s Day is marked under the shadow of the devastating earthquakes that struck South-Eastern Türkiye just over one month ago, killing over 46,000 people and injuring thousands more.
Our priority is to ensure that affected women receive the urgent support they need. Please help UN Women reach more women with the emergency assistance they need. Your contribution can make a difference.