Lebanon

Lebanon is one of the largest refugee hosting countries in the world, with a population of roughly 870,000 refugees, primarily from Syria. The Empowered Aid team conducted research with Syrian refugee women and girls living in Lebanon’s second largest city, Tripoli, which is home to many Syrian refugees living in urban and peri-urban settings. Syrian refugee women and girl co-researchers in Lebanon identified the following risks:

Sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) and other forms of gender-based violence (GBV) were most frequently associated with shelter and cash assistance (registering for cash assistance and using ATMs), followed by sanitation and hygiene, as well as food.
Transportation to and from distribution sites poses a notable threat to women and girls in Lebanon, as taxi drivers in particular can often sexually exploit women and girls who are traveling
SEA risks increase when interacting with sanitation and hygiene aid workers, particularly when workers visit women's and girls’ homes during water and sanitation repairs
Women and girls are at a higher risk of SEA when humanitarian and non-humanitarian workers make home visits, especially when these workers are male and a woman or girl is home alone

Recommendations from Syrian refugee women and girls for preventing SEA:

Provide financial assistance in the form of cash assistance to reduce known SEA-related vulnerabilities faced by women and girls
Offer aid or assistance to women's and girls' households, with at least two aid workers or contractors present in mixed or all-female teams
Establish predetermined, assigned times for small groups to collect distributions, avoiding overcrowding and disorganization at distribution points
Implement closer supervision of distributors and workers at aid distribution points, including the filing and follow-up of complaints
Offer safe and secure withdrawal sessions at ATMs
More security – especially female security workers – at distribution points, especially ATMs in Lebanon

Resources for Lebanon

Empowered Aid Sector Brief: SEA in relation to food aid

Empowered Aid Lebanon Sector Brief: SEA in Relation to Food Aid

This brief summarizes key findings around sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) in relation to food distribution and provides targeted recommendations to make food distribution safer for women and girls. This is also available in Arabic.

Empowered Aid: Participatory Action Research with Refugee Women and Girls to Better Prevent Sexual Exploitation and Abuse | Lebanon Policy Brief

This brief shares findings from the first phase of Empowered Aid in Lebanon around risks of sexual exploitation and abuse in relation to food, water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH), shelter, and cash assistance, throughout the distribution process. It is based on rigorous, longitudinal qualitative research with women and girls living in an urban refugee context in Tripoli, Lebanon. It provides targeted, action-oriented recommendations to make aid distributions safer for women and girls, grounded in their own voices. This brief is also available in Arabic.

Empowered Aid: Transforming Gender and Power Dynamics in the Delivery of Humanitarian Aid | Lebanon Country Report

This report shares findings from the first phase of Empowered Aid in Lebanon around risks of sexual exploitation and abuse in relation to food, WASH, shelter, and cash assistance, throughout the distribution process. It is based on rigorous, longitudinal qualitative research with women and girls living in an urban refugee context in Tripoli, Lebanon. The report also summarizes findings related to other types of distribution-related gender-based violence. It provides targeted, action-oriented recommendations to make aid distributions safer for women and girls, grounded in their own voices.