Inhabitants of a village on the Syrian-Turkish border, a project implemented by Qatar Charity (QC) with donations collected by a group of Qatari youth, feel the place has given displaced Syrians a “new life”.
“Competitors 2”, as the village on the suburbs of Sajjo is called, was opened earlier this year and consists of 100 housing units – with two rooms each - for 600 people.
Residents narrated their experiences during a visit by a QC delegation to the village. The delegation included Mohamed Abdullah al-Yafei, support services directorate manager, and Ibrahim Zainal, deputy executive director of the department for
international development.
The village includes a mosque, a school, a clinic and points for distributing water and collecting garbage. Besides, there are toilets, sinks and children’s playgrounds. The village is environment-friendly as it uses solar energy.
Each family is provided with a fridge, fan, stove, radio, six mattresses, six blankets, curtains, carpets and water containers. Construction of the village cost about QR2.6mn and was completed towards the end of last year.
The village was named “Competitors 2” because it was funded by a group of the young elite in Qatar as part of the “Competitors” contest held by QC, according to a statement from the organisation, noting that the contest aimed to engage society in charity work in an “unusual manner”.
The participants managed to collect QR12m QR in 45 days in the first half of 2014 for those affected in Syria.
Taleb Siraj, one of the residents, told the QC delegation how their lives changed after he and his six family members moved to the place eight months ago.
He recalled the hardships faced by his family when they lived in a tent in the Al Salameh border camp for a year and a half. From braving a harsh winter and a scorching summer to coping with insects and rats and a lack of privacy for the family – the problems were numerous,
according to Siraj.  
At the “Competitors 2” village, however, Siraj felt comfortable in his new home and could lead a dignified life with his family. They also get to use a heater in the winter and a fan in the summer, besides a small fridge.
Hassan Zayyat; another resident of the village, joined the conversation and said: “My seven-member family felt a huge difference after moving to this house. Our life is more stable now. In addition, a school is available for our children to get their education.”
Both Siraj and Zayyat thanked Qatari donors on behalf of all residents of “Competitors 2” for implementing such projects for displaced Syrians. They also appealed for further efforts to provide adequate housing to thousands of Syrians, who were still living in tents, in
order to protect their dignity.
A number of other projects were also funded under the “Competitors 2” initiative. These included operating a mobile bakery in Syria, Al Amal Hospital on the Turkish-Syrian border, a Qatari bakery at Reyhani in the south of Turkey and the “Competitors” bakery on the Turkish-Syrian border.
The participants also inaugurated a number of projects for benefit of the Syrian
refugees in Jordan last year.
QC has implemented four village projects for displaced Syrians, comprising 400 prefabricated housing units. By November, it will complete Al Rayyan residential town, the largest of its kind for displaced Syrians, at QR40mn, the statement notes.
The total number of housing units will become 1,400, which will include necessary facilities.