DIYARBAKIR, Turkey — Abdullah Ahmed and his family were living in Damascus before the outbreak of the Syrian civil war nine years ago. Fleeing the war, he and his family resettled in Turkey’s southeastern province of Diyarbakir near the Syrian border. Following a few devastating years, the family gradually managed to get on their feet and rebuild their lives. Ahmed was admitted to the nursing school at a Diyarbakir university in 2011 and began working at an air conditioning repair service during weekends. He and his two siblings were the breadwinners of their family of eight until the novel coronavirus pandemic hit and turned their world upside down once again. 

Ahmed’s story illustrates the plight of some 4 million Syrians scattered across Turkey who are among the most vulnerable to the pandemic. Most of the refugees have been unable to work due to broad restrictions instituted because of COVID-19 and the resulting economic fallout. Since most of the Syrian workers — estimated at more than 1 million — had been employed as unregistered laborers, they are unable to receive unemployment benefits from the government’s relief measures introduced to help workers in the formal economy. The pandemic has also affected their dreams of a better future, since distance learning is a challenge for most of them due to language barriers and a lack of resources.

Large number of the refugees are living in Turkey's conflict-ridden southeast region due to its proximity to Syria. According to Turkey’s official Immigration Administration, more than 22,000 of these refugees, including the Ahmed family, live in Diyarbakir, the largest city and main commercial hub of the mainly Kurdish southeast.

Ahmet recounts that he was laid off from his weekend job at the repair service soon after the outbreak hit, noting that his family of eight is now relying on the income of a sibling who has been lucky enough to work from home. Many Syrians have been employed in jobs that cannot be done remotely, such as in the agriculture, construction and textile sectors and labor-intensive industries.