WFP/UNHCR SMS Food Voucher Scheme for Iraqi Refugees in Syria

In October 2009, roughly 1.2 million Iraqi refugees were living in Syria, many dispersed in urban neighbourhoods such as Jaramana and Sayeda Zeinab in Damascus, where traditional food-parcel distribution required travel to fixed points.

WFP, working with UNHCR, Syria's Ministry of Economy and Trade, mobile operator MTN Syria and technology partner Souktel, launched what WFP described as the first mobile-phone-based food voucher scheme of its kind. Pilot families were issued donated SIM cards and sent an SMS code every two months worth $22 per family member, redeemable for rice, wheat, lentils, cheese and eggs at contracted local shops. Following the pilot's success, the scheme scaled up to reach approximately 9,600 families (about 32,500 refugees) across several Syrian governorates including Homs, Latakia, Tartous, Hama, Idleb and Daraa.

The approach let dispersed urban refugees access aid without travelling to distribution points and gave them more dietary choice than fixed parcels. Some participants reported the range of participating shops and eligible items was too narrow, and said they would have preferred unrestricted cash for costs like rent or medical care.

The programme predates Syria's 2011 civil war; sources reviewed do not document its continuation once the conflict began, so it is catalogued here as a historical, time-bound practice rather than an ongoing one.