Erbil, Kurdistan Region of Iraq—August 2026
SPARK’s Networks of Change II (NOC2) Programme works to build safer, more resilient educational environments across the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. As part of this ongoing programme, SPARK has engaged VisionAID, a locally registered NGO, as a service provider to deliver a defined package of field-level activities in Ranya, Chamchamal, and Halabja.
NOC2 has established a network of safe spaces within universities and high schools across the three target locations, giving educators, students, and community members structured access to awareness-raising, psychosocial support, and referral pathways. Through this engagement, SPARK is working with VisionAID on sustainability and localisation, transferring ownership of these systems to a locally rooted partner capable of carrying them forward independently.
VisionAID facilitates the safe space and referral system to educational partners (universities and high schools) across Ranya, Chamchamal, and Halabja as part of SPARK’s Networks of Change II Programme, supporting the programme’s awareness, training, and referral objectives on the ground.
The engagement’s central objective is the gradual handover of the referral system currently operating within NOC2 safe spaces, a deliberate SPARK-led decision to advance long-term sustainability, ensuring referral pathways and case management practices remain embedded locally well beyond the programme’s direct support. Local ownership is being built progressively, with SPARK and VisionAID coordinating closely throughout implementation.
Programme Background
Since establishing its safe space network under NOC2, SPARK has prioritised building durable, community-anchored systems that outlast the programme’s own implementation cycle. Partnering with local organisations like VisionAID reflects that approach: strengthening local capacity, embedding referral and safeguarding standards within Kurdistan’s education sector, and working toward outcomes that continue after SPARK’s direct involvement ends.
The Networks of Change II Programme is funded by the Kingdom of the Netherlands and delivered by SPARK across the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, in partnership with local organisations including VisionAID. Work under the current engagement is expected to continue through the end of the year, with SPARK and VisionAID reviewing progress on the referral system handover as implementation advances.