The Ways to Help Earthquake Victims from Abroad via Local NGOs in Turkey and Syria
Turkey was hit by two massive earthquakes (7.8 and 7.5) yesterday which has affected 10 cities in the South East of Turkey, and Syria. In Turkey, 24617 people have died so far and many people lost their houses (nearly 7000 buildings collapsed so far). — Source, Updated: 12:19 PM on February 12
Unfortunately, the weather is also really cold and it has been snowing or hailing constantly. People who have lost their houses, and those that have been rescued from the rubble are in need of blankets, heaters, sanitary pads, baby diapers, sleeping bags, etc.
In order to meet these needs, NGOs have started to work together with local municipalities, communities, and individuals to coordinate logistics and supply needs in the most effective way possible.
Below, you can find out how you can support these NGOs from abroad:
Needs Map (İhtiyaç Haritası) — Turkey
An NGO called “Needs Map” is one in which people who are in need can add their needs to a map, and those needs can be supplied through donations.
A group of employees from EBRD started a community initiative project to support the Needs Map for people abroad to be able to donate easily.
Here you can find the donation website.
AKUT — Turkey
An NGO called AKUT, The Search and Rescue Association, is a voluntary organization involved in searching, assisting, and rescuing all who require aid within its authority and means, natural disasters, and all other emergency conditions with no political affiliation.
Here are ways to donate AKUT.
For those living abroad, it may be easier to donate to AKUT via the Turkish Philanthropic Fund.
AHBAP — Turkey
An important platform, AHBAP, coordinates with municipalities in Turkey to support earthquake victims. They have AHBAP volunteer teams all over Turkey and are one of the most effective platforms these days.
Here is its website.
Unfortunately, the website is only in Turkish, you may use the translator or use the donation info I have translated below:
Bank name: TÜRKİYE İŞ BANKASI
Account name: AHBAP DERNEĞİ
SWIFT code: ISBKTRIS
USD Account (1021–2150262) IBAN: TR320006400000210212150262
EUR Account (1021–2150277) IBAN: TR150006400000210212150277
To donate cryptocurrencies to Ahbap:
BEP20 Network:
0xB67705398fEd380a1CE02e77095fed64f8aCe463
ERC20 Network:
0xe1935271D1993434A1a59fE08f24891Dc5F398Cd
Avalanche Network:
0x868D27c361682462536DfE361f2e20B3A6f4dDD8
Oxfam — Turkey & Syria
Oxfam is not a local NGO, however, they work with local authorities directly. You can donate to Oxfam to help Turkey and Syria through their emergency appeal. For every £1 you donate to this emergency appeal, they will allocate 9p of your donation to cover general support and running costs.
Here you can find the website.
UNICEF — Syria Appeal
In Syria, where children already face one of the most complex humanitarian situations in the world, UNICEF is preparing to support the humanitarian response in coordination with partners. The immediate focus is on ensuring affected children and families have access to safe drinking water and sanitation services — critical in preventing illness in the early days of a crisis.
Here you can find the donation page.
Molham Volunteering Team — Syria
Molham Volunteering Team is a nonprofit, charitable organization from Jordan, by a group of then-university students. It aims at providing aid to internally displaced and refugee Syrians in northern Syria and neighboring countries. Molham Team has also started an emergency campaign for people in Syria.
Here you can find the donation page.
BTC Turk (Cryptocurrency) — Turkey
You can support the earthquake victims by sending cryptocurrency to the wallet addresses using a cryptocurrency wallet with your BtcTurk account, or a cryptocurrency account on different platforms.
BtcTurk will automatically convert the cryptocurrencies into TL and will not charge any commission fees for conversions.
Here you can visit the website for more information.
Cryptocurrency donations: Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH), and Tether (USDT).
Earthquake Safety Region Map — Turkey:
I will keep this blog post updated daily with current info and needs.
