The World Bank’s Executive Board of Directors recently approved some $300 million in additional financing to Lebanon’s Emergency Crisis and COVID-19 Response Social Safety Net (ESSN) project, with the objective of expanding the scope of people benefiting from the net and further bolstering the program in order to accommodate for present and future shocks. Said package is the second of its nature since the launching of the ESSN project in January 2021, with the program receiving an additional financing of $4 million in May 2022. The World Bank commented, however, that Lebanon must allocate some fiscal room in its budget to finance similar program on the longer term. The World Bank then commented on the plethora of crisis that have been ravaging Lebanon, and their harsh impact on the poor sections of the society, bearing in mind that the country has no comprehensive and inclusive social program. The World Bank also added that it has already provided support to some 82,000 households, with post-distribution surveys indicating that households spent 43% of their allocations on food and 12% on healthcare, with 99% of beneficiaries indicating an improvement in living conditions, and 66% of households with children reporting that this financial support improved school enrollment. The report elaborated that the additional financing would secure cash transfers for 160,000 households for a period of two years, bearing in mind that each household receives a flat $25 monthly amount, in addition to $20 per household member (a maximum of 6 members). The additional financing would also provide room for securing transfers to some 92,000 students (aged between 13 and 18) to cover schooling expenses, with transfers ranging between $285 and $425 per scholastic year. Finally, the $300 million financing would expand the scope of social services provided by the Social Development Centers of the Ministry of Social Affairs, which caters for 400,000 individuals, as well as build the capacities of the social workers at these centers.