This program aims to assist severely vulnerable families with cash grants, following assessment of their situation, degree of vulnerability and project feasibility and profitability. This assistance is provided on a case-by-case basis only.

SSSD has a vision for development (moto: on the margin… at the Core), and faith in participation and in improving livelihoods based on actual needs. Thus, it aims at developing the individuals’ ability to develop resilience in critical conditions, depending on individual abilities and potential knowledge in order to preserve, develop, enhance and sustain human resources. This is done through monitoring procedures, interviews, study of each humanitarian case and conducting feasibility studies for each project.

Generally, SSSD volunteers’ do the monitoring and needs assessment for IDPs, and affected communities , in order to improve livelihoods and find job opportunities that help people earn a decent living for themselves and their families.

Small Business Grants in 2017

In order to empower people, help them generate livelihood resources and enhance their self-reliance, SSSD, in cooperation with the UNHCR, trained 395 beneficiaries on the basics of small enterprise management and then helped implement 212 small projects whose entrepreneurs were selected from among the trainees. The following governorates were served: Damascus and Rural Damascus, Homs, Sweida, Tartous, Hama, Aleppo, Hasakeh.
Types and ranges of projects varied and included technical services (repair of mobile phones, sewing workshops, etc.), production (cleaning industry, dairy and cheese industry, footwear industry, etc.), commercial (shops of all kinds) and, last but not least, agricultural and pastoral projects (raising sheep, cattle, poultry, beekeeping, etc.).
The SBG program has had a significant impact on the lives of the beneficiaries and their psychological, social and economic conditions, representing in some cases a qualitative leap in their life.

In 2018, the activities continued in the same domains.

In 2019-2020 SSSD supported the implementation of the following projects: