Background and context
DRC established activities in the north Iraq governorates of Dohouk, Erbil, Sulamaniyah (KRG) and Kirkuk in 2008 and is working with capacity building of local authorities and income generation.

The security in the governorates of Erbil, Sulaymaniyah and Dohouk are considered relatively stable. In the ethnically-tense governorate of Kirkuk, security incidents continue to occur. Attacks persist, including car bombings and kidnappings. However, under the previous regime, the northern governorates were subject of continuous and often harsh violations of human rights, which led parts of the population to flee. The infrastructure was also neglected and the scarcity of resources within KRG authorities has not allowed them to be renewed.

Displacement
The north of Iraq is considered relatively secure. The previous regime committed serious human rights violations towards the population in the region, which forced around 45,000 families to flee. The infrastructure was neglected by the old regime and scarce resources within KRG authorities have not allowed them to improve it. The outbreak of sectarian violence in February 2006 led to renewed displacements, especially to Dohouk where around 10-12% of the total population are IDPs. The total number of people displaced in the region after 2003 is around 18,732 families. Out of these, 80% arrived after 2006 and are coming mainly from Baghdad and Ninewa.

Humanitarian needs
The large influx of displaced people to the region has stretched the service delivery system to the maximum and people are in need of several basic commodities:

• Proper shelter and housing
• Social services and employment opportunities for the overall population
• Stable infrastructure