Sawa Call Center—Legal and Psycho-social Support for Vulnerable Palestinians

About Solution

In the Palestinian context,there's a lack of resources and an increased amount of restrictions on movement which is prohibiting enough aid from entering.From the constant political turbulence,to the economic deficit,the situation in Palestine is only worsening.Increased amounts of internally displaced families,and refugees in camps located in East Jerusalem and the West Bank,are cause for the prevalence of many forms of violence, and the overall denial of basic human rights which are agreed upon internationally.According to OCHA in 2019,communities in "Area C" make up about 60% of the West Bank are areas that are controlled militarily and civilly by the Israeli government.According to this same report,approximately 300,000 people are living in Area C communities.Of those people,61,276 are in need of legal support which they cannot afford or cannot access because of restrictions on movement and distance from cities.Moreover, according to Sawa's 121 Helpline database report for 2019,there have been 8,545 cases documented on assistance needed for legal support,medical support,abuse and violence,and MHPSS.There are alarmingly increased amounts of legal and psycho-social support being requested,and for this reason Sawa is currently increasing the amount of operators specified in legal aid studies to provide at least 50% of callers with support needed.The innovative fashion in which the Helpline was created allows for anyone in Palestine to dial the toll-free number "121" which is available 16 hours/7 days a week.This innovation has efficiently connected internally displaced people and refugees to quick,easy and readily available legal,psycho-social and medical services,and referrals for over the past 15 years. All calls are documented in the Caller Information Database,including the age,gender,and location of the caller and the reasons for the call,and comments on case progress.This database can be used to generate focused and detailed reports on different issues faced by different groups in Palestine.The program aims to improve the quality and efficiency of Sawa’s service and to make the service available to as many people as possible across Palestine and to ensure peace and justice are readily available for those who seek it.Our solution addresses the challenge in various ways;it is a one of a kind and free solution to providing easy access and readily available legal services to Palestinians in need.Second it is an exceptional way for tracking growth and needs of legal,psycho-social,and medical services needed and in which geographical area most cases are coming from.The uniqueness of this program is that its widely used by abused women and children, an often overlooked and marginalized group that's unfortunately not receiving the support or help they need through the government due to the occupation.

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