The European Commission has approved a new assistance package worth €400 million, for the education of Syrian refugees in Turkey.

This is the first action adopted following the agreement by EU Member States to finance an additional €3 billion for the Facility for Refugees in Turkey.

€400 million will be given in the form of a direct grant to the Turkish Ministry of National Education of Turkey. The funding will provide for the continuation of the current education project for Syrian refugees in Turkey which will expire in October 2018.

The new assistance package is broader in scope than the current education project: it will focus on outreach, increased quality of formal education for students, Turkish language training for adults in Public Education Centres, the continuation and improvement of the examination system, and social cohesion activities. The duration of the new assistance is also longer than the previous package, covering three academic years rather than two.

The package aims to ensure the sustainability of activities for the period after EU Facility funding has ended. For example, the number of contracted teachers should gradually reduce as Syrian students become fully integrated into public schools and Turkish Ministry teachers take over.

On 29 June, EU Member States agreed on how to finance the second tranche of €3 billion of the Facility, with €2 billion of this amount financed from the EU budget and the remaining €1 billion by Member States' contributions. The agreement honours the commitment undertaken by the EU under the EU-Turkey statement of 18 March 2016 to provide a second instalment of €3 billion for the EU Facility before the €3 billion initially allocated has been fully used up.

As a result, the Commission amended the earlier financing decision, reflecting the mobilisation of €2 billion from the EU budget and €1 billion from the Member States during 2018-2019.

The EU Facility for Refugees in Turkey – Webpage and Factsheet

Factsheet: Humanitarian support to refugees in Turkey

Second Annual Report for the Facility for Refugees in Turkey

Facility for Refugees in Turkey – Commission Reports on Progress in tenth Steering Committee

EU-Turkey statement, 18 March 2016