Sexual and reproductive health focus group discussions with Syrian men and women living as refugees in the Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.

Background: Conflict in Syria since 2011 led to over one million Syrians fleeing to Lebanon, predominantly from economically disadvantaged areas with low literacy and high child marriage rates. Over 90% live in extreme poverty, in informal tented settlements with minimal access to education, healthcare or employment. Displacement and poverty have further increased early marriages and unplanned pregnancies, and curtailed access to sexual and reproductive healthcare (SRH) in the Bekaa valley. This is exacerbated by increasing rates of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), intimate partner violence and domestic violence.

Study design: We aimed to explore SRH beliefs and practices and teach on key SRH topics through focus group discussions (FGD) and questionnaires, co-designed with Syrian practitioners, conducted with Syrian men and women. FGD were recorded, transcribed and thematically analysed. Questionnaires collected demographics and explored SRH beliefs and practices.

Findings: 24 FGD with 203 participants, 72.4% female and 27.6% men. 90.1% participants were married with an average age-gap of 6.3 years between partners. Teenage marriage rates were 55.6% for women, and 47.4% delivered their first child before the age of 20. 43.6% participants were not using any contraception. Findings demonstrate the impacts of SRH cultural norms and changes due to displacement, financial crisis, and increased exposure to technology and NGOs.

Conclusions: SRH is multifaceted and contested, requiring systemic improvements in access to care, employment and education. This small but important proof-of-concept study demonstrates the possibility of engaging men and women in SRH discussion; paramount to empowering communities and challenging intergenerational SGBV.