The United Nations (UN) released on May 9, 2023 a report titled “2023 Lebanon Crisis Response Plan” (LCRP) that brings 118 partner organizations with the purpose of assisting vulnerable people in Lebanon with $3.59 billion in the form of needs-based appeal. Said organizations provide assistance in the form of humanitarian and stabilization interventions by means of donor contributions under the umbrella of humanitarian, government, and development partners under the LCRP. As per the UN, Lebanon hosts the largest number of displaced persons per capita and per square kilometer in the world which has aggravated the economic, financial, social, and health crises over the last few years. To date, Lebanon has received around $9.3 billion to support vulnerable Lebanese, displaced Syrians, Palestinian refugees, and public institutions under the LCRP. The report mentioned that around 3.8 million individuals in Lebanon are believed to be in need of assistance, of which some 3.2 million will be targeted during the year 2023. The targeted population group encompasses circa 1.5 million vulnerable Lebanese, some 1.5 million displaced Syrians, 180,000 Palestinian refugees in Lebanon (PRL) and 31,400 Palestinian refugees from Syria (PRS). According to the report, Lebanon is still at the forefront of one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world since the onset of the conflict in Syria about twelve years ago. More specifically, the report noted that due to Lebanon’s high dependence on imports of basic goods and commodities, the devaluation of the Lebanese Pound against the US Dollar has fueled inflationary pressure by 158% in October 2022. Furthermore, the price of the Survival and Minimum Expenditure Baskets (S/MEB), which monitors the cost of living in Lebanon, has increased by more than 652% during the June 2020 and September 2022 period (92% increase in 2022 alone). The report also noted in this respect that a quarter of Lebanese employees were earning less than 20% of the S/MEB. In the same vein, both inflation and the suppressed income level have pushed families further into poverty, thereby rendering them unable to meet their basic survival needs. The report mentioned that the LCRP was prepared with four strategic objectives in mind. Delving further into details, the plan aims to ensure the protection of vulnerable people (displaced Syrians and other vulnerable populations) in accordance with international law, provide immediate assistance to vulnerable populations (vulnerable Lebanese, Syrians, PRL and PRS) in order to alleviate the rapid deterioration of social & economic conditions, support service provision through national systems by safeguarding the infrastructure and services on the verge of collapse, and reinforce the country’s economic, social and environmental stability through strengthening productive sectors by increasing economic and livelihood opportunities. In parallel, the LCRP provides strategies that will be adopted by different sectors. In details, the report mentioned that the basic assistance sector aims to stop vulnerable households from falling deeper into poverty by providing them with regular cash assistance to increase their access to basic goods and services. The response plan concerning the education sector aims at strengthening the education system by providing children the opportunity to learn and develop 21^st century skills. Concerning the energy sector, the LCRP plans to increase the generation of electricity by installing renewable energy systems, promote the usage of energy efficient products, and rehabilitate and reinforce the electricity infrastructure network. Under the food security and agriculture sector, the LCRP aims to address the urgent needs of Lebanese residents facing severe food insecurity by improving their access to several nutritious foods to prevent acute malnutrition, and strengthen agricultural production & productivity. The report noted in this vein that 57% of Lebanese households are facing difficulties in accessing food products, while 33% are unable to meet their minimum dietary requirements. The report noted that LCRP support to the health sector will target the lifting of access barriers to primary healthcare and hospital care information & services in order to increase the supply and demand for these services, thereby benefiting a larger portion of the population. The nutrition sector response plan aims to prevent malnutrition of children, adolescents and women in Lebanon. The livelihoods sector’s response plan calls for reducing the socio-economic shocks on the most vulnerable groups in Lebanon through short and long-term support that will help them build their skills to increase their employability. The objective of the protection sector, according to the report, is to provide a safe and protective living environment for vulnerable individuals in Lebanon. The shelter sector’s goal is to guarantee the protection of vulnerable populations and to contribute to social stability by providing “physically adequate” shelters. The support to the social stability sector will be geared towards alleviating communal tensions and violent conflicts to preserve stability in 2023. Finally, the report stated that the water sector’s response plan will on the one hand support building capacities and develop institutional governance to deliver better policies and strategies and on the other help vulnerable populations in obtaining access to water.

The table below summarizes the targeted individuals by each sector, the need-based appeal, and the number of partner organizations assisting each sector: