Northern Lebanon is home to some of the most vulnerable, destitute Syrian refugees. A former aid worker is helping them regain confidence and prepare to rebuild their country once peace returns, with the help of the European Endowment for Democracy (EED).

Up until 2011, Mohamad Ashraf Al Hafny provided psychological support to Iraqi refugees in Syria as an aid worker for the Syrian Red Crescent. Six years down the line, he is a refugee himself and is tapping into his experience in disaster management to help to his own people.

Al Hafny founded Lamsat Ward in 2012. The organisation provides psychosocial support services as well as advocacy and awareness-raising activities. It reaches out to some of the most vulnerable Syrian refugees, including young people struggling to find their place in Lebanon. The group is based in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, in a neighbourhood that is home to a large Syrian population.

Lamsat Ward means “touch of a rose” in Arabic. “The idea is that this rose will blossom again, it symbolises a new beginning,” says Al Hafny.

The organisation is currently receiving financing from EED to support the Katatib initiative, a ‘social hub’ offering a mix of educational and cultural activities. Hosted in a centre in downtown Tripoli, activities focus strongly on young people. The centre has grown into a safe and welcoming place away from the harsh realities of life as a Syrian refugee.

At the centre, volunteers, staff and young people take part in various activities. One of those introduces young Syrians and Lebanese to concepts of civic education, critical thinking and principles of democracy. During training cycles of three months, they learn how to analyse what they read and hear and about the importance of searching for reliable information sources amid a conflict that has deeply polarised their country.

The training programme is just one component. The group also holds regular film screenings followed by discussions during which viewers can express their view on the issues raised by the film and share their own life stories. It also organises reading sessions and hosts open cultural conferences.

“We try to instil a sense of responsibility in young people,” says Al Hafny. “Many have already attended training sessions by other civil society organisations but have not had any chance to put what they learned into practice”

The European Endowment for Democracy assists pro-democratic civil society organisations, movements and individual activists, acting in favour of a pluralistic multiparty system, regardless of their size or formal status. The EU funds the project ‘Support to the European Endowment for Democracy’, with the aim of supporting the EED to foster democratisation in countries in political transition and societies struggling for democratisation.

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