Tyre and Zürich: Improving Local Services for Migrants, Refugees, and the Local Population through City-to-City Cooperation

Summary

The City of Tyre commits to partner with the City of Zürich to improve services for migrants, refugees and locals in Tyre.

This partnership aims to increase municipal staffing and expertise, conduct technical knowledge and best practices exchanges, while jointly implementing inclusive projects for Tyre’s inhabitants, including Syrian and Palestinian refugees. 

Building on earlier successful projects, Tyre is now designing two projects as part of the partnership. First, a “park and ride” service with a parking lot and bus shuttle system to provide refugees, migrant workers, and local communities with cheap and reliable public transportation to access the city’s facilities and commuting zones, while contributing to the city’s green transition. 

Second, a new digital hub and co-working space will seek to break down employment barriers for refugees, while helping to address Lebanon’s economic challenges. The hub will provide skilled youth, including refugees and marginalized groups, with access to digital opportunities, while the co-working space will enhance social interaction and networking between investors and job seekers. 

These projects aim will foster social cohesion, economic inclusion, and a more sustainable and accessible urban environment for all residents of Tyre.

The City of Zürich and Tyre have submitted this partnership as a joint pledge. 

Impact

The C2CC aims at improving the city’s performance and strengthening the city's capacities to deal with the challenges occurred due to the Syrian refugee influx in addition to the Palestinian refugees who have been living in refugee camps in the city for decades. In the frame of the C2CC, the following results have already been achieved:

• Increase personnel of RTO-staff. Two engineers and a municipal coordinator were recruited between 2019-2021.
• In the process of building capacities through expert exchanges and mutual expert visits (e.g., in the field of refugee reception and soft mobility). In October 2019 and April 2020, refugee reception experts from Zurich visited Tyre with the aim of better understanding how Tyre city is coping with the influx of a high number of Syrian refugees. The areas covered were housing, work, education, social life. In return, a delegation from Tyre city, consist of 8 people working in the field of refugee reception, visited Zurich in June2022, for learning and exchange experiences.
• In July 2019, a workshop was conducted in Zurich with project’s partners, with the objective of selecting relevant projects to be implemented. The workshop resulted in identifying urban mobility and traffic congestion in Tyre city as key areas to address. Consequently, a first tangible project has been implemented successfully: two bike rental stations were installed in April 2021, with 30 bicycles in total. One station is located in Masaken and the other in Tyre city, allowing all city residents an environmentally-friendly and low-cost means of transportation. Al Masaken bike station is located in a highly dense area which includes a wide variety of inhabitants; Lebanese plus, Palestinian and Syrian refugees. As well, it’s close to Burj Chmali and El-buss Palestinian camps, which enhance accessibility of refugees to the service and provides an opportunity for host and refugee communities to interact, creating a sense of equality. The significance of the project lies in encouraging physical activity which improves health and reduces diseases related to a low level of physical activity. As well, the project provides a cost-effective alternative to fossil fuel vehicles, which helps to reduce carbon emissions and motorized transport costs. Furthermore, the project helps in reducing the volume of traffic, resulting in fewer traffic jams, increased safety, and quieter city centres. 
• Further, a park and ride project is in the process of being implemented. It consists of constructing a parking lot and establishing a bus shuttle system to cover the city’s main facilities. The project is located in the central city of Tyre, accessible by all and therefore, it will provide an alternative viable transport means for all city residents including refugees, migrant workers and tourists.  Refugees and migrant workers often rely on public transportation, and this project provides them with a reliable and efficient means of commuting to the city's main facilities. Improved public transportation options can reduce the financial burden on refugees who may face economic challenges and limited resources.
• Furthermore, the planning of a digital hub and co-working space is in the process of development through mutual meetings and discussions. Over the past years, Lebanon has been facing a financial and economic crisis that has deteriorated the living conditions for both refugees and Lebanese. Both populations face increased unemployment rates coupled with a high risk of poverty. In particular, refugees who suffer from limited access to the Lebanese labor markets as a result of labour restrictive regulations. Therefore, the project highlights the global digital economy as the main driver of enhancing innovation, economic growth and job creation for skilled youth including refugees and marginalized populations. The digital hub co-working space, serves as a platform to enhance social interactions and networking between investors and job seekers, which can be particularly advantageous for refugees seeking job opportunities in the host country.

By highlighting these aspects, the projects not only address the specific needs of migrants and refugees but also promote social cohesion, economic inclusion, and a more sustainable and accessible urban environment for all residents of Tyre.

Lessons learned

Key positive lessons:

• To emphasize the role and responsibility of cities and local governmental authorities in achieving sustainable urban development.
• Ownership of the project support long-term motivation and commitment. 

 Key negative lessons: nothing so far.