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
- Lebanon-specific resources
Phase 2 Pilot Reports in Lebanon
This booklet shares the reports from the two pilots conducted in Lebanon – a fuel voucher distribution and a food distribution – to test recommendations made by women and girls that could increase their safety at aid distributions. The booklet contains the summary report for each pilot as well as individual reports for each of the tools used during the distribution. The tools used by the distribution team, and how they planned for the distributions can be found in the Toolkit for Planning and Monitoring Safer Aid Distributions on the “Manuals and Toolkits” tab.
Empowered Aid in Lebanon
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.
Empowered Aid: Participatory action research with refugee women & girls to better prevent sexual exploitation & 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, 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.
Empowered Aid: Participatory action research with refugee women & girls to better prevent sexual exploitation & abuse | Lebanon COVID-19 Brief
This brief summarizes recommendations to prevent and respond to SEA in the context of COVID-19.
Empowered Aid: Participatory action research with refugee women & girls to better prevent sexual exploitation & abuse | Lebanon Sector-Specific Briefs
Empowered Aid Lebanon sector brief: SEA in relation to Food Aid
This brief summarizes key findings around SEA in relation to food distribution and provides targeted recommendations to make food distribution safer for women and girls.
Empowered Aid Lebanon sector brief: SEA in relation to WASH Assistance
This brief summarizes key findings around SEA in relation to WASH and provides targeted recommendations to make WASH assistance safer for women and girls.
Empowered Aid Lebanon sector brief: SEA in relation to Shelter Assistance
This brief summarizes key findings around SEA in relation to shelter aid, and provides targeted recommendations to make shelter-related distributions safer for women and girls.
Empowered Aid Lebanon sector brief: SEA in relation to Cash Assistance
This brief summarizes key findings around SEA in relation to cash assistance, and provides targeted recommendations to make cash assistance safer for women and girls.
