1. 29 June 2016
“Each time we heard an explosion nearby,
sending a black plume smoke into the air,
we would run indoors to find a safe place.
Then a few minutes later when the bom-
bardment was over we would all go outside
and start working again, remembering we
had a mission to accomplish.”
“It was really stressful and we were work-
ing full speed to get the antenna assembled
and pointing in the right direction so that
we could get back inside quickly.”
Even before the risks of installation, Samah
and the team worked for 27 months, to se-
cure approvals to import the VSAT equip-
ment.
When not dodging
sniperfire or the
risk of bombard-
ment, especially in
areas like Homs or
Aleppo, the IT
team provides all
the five hubs in
Damascus,
Qamishli, Aleppo,
Tartous and
Homs, with full IT
support, including
configuring networks and other communi-
cation and IT systems. Recently the team
also spearheaded a seamless transfer for
the Damascus team to return to the refur-
bished UNICEF office, as it relocated from
its temporary base. Transferring IT systems
and servers for over 100 staff operating in
an L-3 emergency setting is a significant
challenge. The move was so smooth that no
@UNICEF Syri-
an Arab Republic/2016
Syria: Setting up IT systems in a conflict zone - eve-
ry day risk, every day challenge
By Shushan Mebrahtu
Damascus, Syrian
Arab Republic, 29
June 2016 - Check-
ing emails on your
mobile phone, link-
ing up a quick
bridge or skype call
with the field offices,
Regional Office, Ge-
neva and Headquar-
ters - daily business
we often take for
granted in the mod-
ern world. How often do you stop and think
what work and risks might lie behind the
global communications we have at our finger-
tips?
In Syria, our Information Technology col-
leagues go to extraordinary lengths to make
sure we can work seamlessly with local part-
ners and as part of the global UNICEF team.
And this involves courage to take personal
risks to keep us all connected.
Staying and delivering
Aleppo today is one of the most dangerous
cities in the world to be a child. To stay and
deliver for an estimated 450,000 children, our
Aleppo team needs to be connected. The
challenges for our IT team to install satellite
equipment in Aleppo were enormous. Battle
lines are just 800 metres from the UNICEF
Aleppo office.
“We started installing the equipment on the
rooftop, thinking all the time about when the
next mortar or sniper fire will hit us,” remem-
bers Samah Al Maalouf, UNICEF Syria’s ICT
Specialist, who led the operation in Aleppo.
@UNICEF Syrian Arab Re-
public/2016

2. 2
one noticed the slightest hiccup – emergency
and all other work flowed without interrup-
tion.
Life-saving support for millions of chil-
dren in Syria
Being connected by phone and internet, and
having operational computer systems, is crit-
ical to enable colleagues in Syria to deliver
emergency humanitarian assistance such as
immunization and other health needs, nutri-
tion, WASH, education and protection. Chil-
dren’s needs and the challenges are enor-
mous.
With 184 staff, the UNICEF Syria team works
from hubs in Aleppo, Qamishli, Tartous,
Homs and Damascus. The team has deliv-
ered polio immunization for nearly 3 million
children under five and is currently imple-
menting the first nationwide immunization
campaign since the start of the crisis over
five years ago; emergency nutrition support
for thousands of children living under siege;
safe drinking water for over 10 million peo-
ple; innovative education programmes to
help get children whose education has been
disrupted back to learning; psycho-social
support for traumatized children among oth-
er programmes; and advocacy for the pro-
tection of children.
On 16 June, the 2016 UNICEF Executive
Board announced that UNICEF Syria Office
was honored the 2015 team awards for ex-
traordinary personal risks along with the
Yemen and Thailand offices.
“When I reflect back on my experience in
Aleppo, on the rooftop, my heart starts
pounding as if it is happening right now,”
says Samah. “But at the same time this
memory inspires me to do more because I
have a personal responsibility and commit-
ment to deliver and, most importantly, I
know that my work helps to save the lives of
millions of children in Syria.”
Please get in touch with us at icon@unicef.org or
Abhijit Shanker Chief, Internal Communication Section
ashanker@unicef.org Tel: 917 265 4528